Proud and Defiant
by mush14meyers
Summary: The newsies offer to help Chaos escape the bulls, but what happens when one of the most egotistical and arrogant of the newsies finally finds someone who won't take orders? On top of that, Chaos isn't sure if she absolutely hates him or is falling for him
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't claim ownership over any of the characters in this story, besides Chaos and the other names of Brooklyn newsies that you don't recognize from the movie. Everyone else from "Newsies" belongsDisney.

Hey guys :D I'm back with another story! Another newsies fanfic, of course. What is this, like number 6? Woah... I need a life.

Okay. So from what I've heard from people, this story is really different from the other ones I've written. But whatever, I'll let you be the judge of that.

There's a few downsides to this story: This is the story that I'm currently working on. All the others that I've posted previously, they were either done or very close to being done. However, this one's not even close so I'm going to be posting as I write, which means they won't be out very fast... Sorry, guys :( I'm thinking maybe I'll post one every three days (more if I can write fast enough).

Alright, just one more thing and we'll start this. The quote below, just read it and keep it in mind. It's got a lot to do with the story.

--START--

**"My only love sprung from my only hate,  
Too early seen unknown, and known too late.  
Prodigious birth of love it is to me,  
That I must love a loathed enemy."**

-Romeo and Juliet- William Shakespeare

.-:-.-:-.

As far as I was concerned, guys had all the fun. For them, they didn't have to worry about uncomfortable, suffocating dresses or endless housework. Sitting alone in my room reading a novel in my free time wasn't my cup of tea.

On that note, sipping tea while being all ladylike didn't amuse me, either. "Two sugars, please" or "Pass the milk, thank you" or "Oh, I'm quite fine, and yourself?". Ugh. I hated tea and I hated manners.

That's why I was a teenage runaway. If you fended for yourself on the streets of New York City in 1900, you were free to do whatever you wanted, whenever you wanted. The only one thing in your way of complete freedom was the bulls. But they were easy enough to run from.

.-:-.-:-.

Hands in pockets of the boys' pants I was dressed in, I walked leisurely down the streets of Manhattan, whistling a tune to myself. I avoided the hectic roads that were bustling with people. I'd much rather walk by myself towards my undecided destination, weaving through the maze of side streets and alleys.

As I wandered past an alleyway, my ears perked up when I heard struggling and the sound of trash cans toppling over. I retraced a few steps backwards and peered inside. A fist fight was just about to begin. It was three against one.

The three huge thugs were closing in on their prey: a newsboy around the age of 16, but who definitely wasn't the largest in his age group. "Maybe... ya should jus' empty yer pockets now... befoah we'se starts to get angry." One of them warned the newsie, shuffling even closer to the helpless kid.

I could tell that the three attackers were drunk by the way they slurred their words and stumbled around. Besides, why else would they be stupid enough to attack someone in broad daylight?

"_Maybe..._ " I mocked the thug's words from the opening of the alley, making my presence known. "Ya should all grow a backbone and pick on someone who ain't one fourth your size. Or are ya afraid ya may lose?" My voice was certain and strong. The adrenalin started to rush through my body when all four of them turned to look at me, but I kept the same confident smirk on my face.

"I think dat goil jus' insulted us." One of them sneered, staring daggers at me. "Nuttin' gets past you, does it?" I replied sarcastically, my mouth forming into a scornful grin. The voice of reason inside me told me over and over again that I was asking to get my ass kicked, but I continued to run my mouth off. The thugs weren't much older than me. Maybe by a couple of years, but man, were they big.

_Nothing wrong with trying to make a fight somewhat fair. The kid needs help, and I'm not just gonna leave him here to get mugged and beat up. Besides, I'm already too far involved to turn back now._

The smallest of the three began advancing towards me, but I kept my ground. "Oh, you'se aksin' for it, little missy. I'se gonna teach ya to keep your mouth shut 'nd your nose outta udder people's business." He growled.

I stood still as he grabbed the neck of my shirt and clenched his fist around it, dragging me up to his eyelevel. The tips of my shoes just barely touched the ground. _Just stall long enough to get the kid out of here... Don't get yourself in further danger than you have to._ I told myself.

He brought me so close to his face that I could smell the alcohol off his breath. "Ready to learn your lesson?" He muttered threateningly. My grin widened. "Teach away." I replied before spitting directly in his face. He loosened his grip on me for a split second, long enough for me to knee him hard in the stomach.

As he fell to the ground, clutching his stomach, I was able to dart past him further into the alleyway. The other two blocked both my methods of getting away: The opening to the street and the fire escape ladder at the far end of the alley.

I looked in all directions, searching for another opportunity to stall for time. As I turned my head, one of them punched me square in the jaw. I stumbled up against the wall where the newsie was still trapped.

"Are ya crazy!?" He whispered. "Ya jus' willingly put yourself into da middle of a fight dat we'se gonna lose." The newsie told me. I put my hand up to my mouth to readjust my jaw, ignoring the blood caused by my teeth knocking into my cheek.

"It's not losin' if ya can get away." I whispered out of the side of my mouth. The two attackers that were on their feet were lurking closer to us, closing us both in like caged animals.

"Follow my lead." I whispered. We inched away from the wall, back to back so we were each facing one of the other guys. They looked over our heads and one nodded at the other, as if to say "Go in for the kill."

"On da count of three..." I muttered through gritted teeth, hoping that the newsie could hear me and the thugs couldn't. No time for that. They were already running full speed towards us. "THREE!" I yelled.

Both the boy and I darted in different directions, causing the two of them to collide head on. If their reflexes hadn't been slowed by the alcohol, we'd have been dead meat by now.

They toppled to the ground and one of the attackers began to yell in aggravation. He pulled a pocket knife from the back of his belt and flipped it open as he struggled to get to his feet.

A shrill whistle cut through the air, causing all of us to look towards the alleyway entrance. They sounded pretty far off, but were getting closer by the second. "Somebody called da bulls..." The newsie mumbled, his eyes widening. We glanced at each other and ran for the street opening, both hurtling over the third attacker who was still curled up holding his stomach.

"Let's split. Cheese it!" I instructed when we were back out on the street. He turned to go one way and I turned to go the other. "Nice meetin' ya. Da names Chaos." I called over my shoulder without slowing my sprint. "Jake." He replied, his voice fading as he ran the other way. "'nd thanks!" Jake added.

.-:-.-:-.

I could hear the cops' whistles getting closer and closer until I could hear their voices, too. They had just turned the corner and seen me running down the street. The fresh bruise starting to form on the side of my face was a dead giveaway that I had been involved in the fight.

"That one! She's getting away!" one policeman yelled, pointing at me. "Hey, you! Stop right where you are! Get her!" another shouted. Soon enough, two or three policemen were right on my tail. I made the mistake of turning around to see how close they were, and they all got a clear look at my face.

_Dammit, Chaos... Look what you did now. Now they all know what you look like._ I scolded myself, running faster and faster on the cobblestone. I headed for the busiest street I could think of near my current location. It would be easy to lose the cops in a crowd of people near the market stands. Lucky for me, it was a cloudless summer day so everyone would be out wandering the city.

I dashed out of one of the side streets and into a horde of passing people. Glancing both ways, I quickly took off running again.

Pushing my way through gaps between the crowds, I sprinted as fast as my legs allowed. The thrill of adrenaline still pumped through my body, making me feel like I had endless energy. I loved that rush. My braided hair blew over my shoulders as I ran, trailing after me.

The sound of the whistles started to get fainter the further I went. I suddenly collided with someone, nearly losing my balance. The tall person turned and looked down at me from underneath the brim of a cowboy hat. His eyes wandered down to the shiner on my chin and his mouth twisted into a grin. "So _you're_ da trouble maker dey're lookin' for." He thought out loud. "Huh... I assumed you'd be a guy. Not too often a goil starts a fist fight."

"I didn't _start_ nuttin'." I responded. "Now if you'se excuse me, I'd ratha' not spend da night in da refuge." I attempted to push past him, but he grabbed my wrist. "C'mon." he muttered simply, pulling me in the direction of the apartment buildings.

"What da hell are ya doin'?!" I yelled as he continued to drag me through the crowd. I wasn't exactly the tallest girl you'd ever meet. Far from it, actually. The long strides he took while he ran were no match for my small legs, so I scrambled behind him and tried not to lose my footing.

"Ya said ya didn't want to end up in da refuge tonight..." He called over his shoulder. "So I'se givin' ya some help." He explained. I nearly tripped over the curb as he pulled me off the sidewalk and across the street. "Da only thing you'se givin' me is bruises on me wrist, buddy." I called back angrily. Knowing that I'd take off in another direction if he let go, he refused to loosen his grip on my arm.

He hastily dragged me up to a building and threw open the front door. "Hey Kloppman... Do me a favor 'nd cover for us if da bulls come by heah, a'right? Thanks!" The boy called to an old man sitting behind a desk. He looked up from a book and, over the rims of his glasses, saw us dash across the wooden floor towards the staircase. "Kelly, dis is da second time dis month you'se brought a criminal in heah to escape da police! And you'se expect me to cover up your lies _again!?_ Well, I ain't gonna d-" The old man yelled.

"Thanks, Kloppman!" The boy repeated, cutting him off. "Kloppman" sighed and returned picked up his book again. "A'right, a'right... fine." He muttered.

He sprinted up the stairs with me in tow and shoved me into a room at the top, shutting the door quickly behind him. I leaned over, placing my hands on my knees. "What... Da hell... is ya tryin'... to do..." I asked between gasps for air. He slid down to the floor and sat against the door. Letting his head drop backwards, he closed his eyes. His chest heaved up and down as he tried to catch his breath.

I irritably observed the finger-print marks on my wrist as I waited for him to talk. Finally catching his breath, he looked up at me. "I jus' did ya a favor. Last time I checked, dat deserves a 'thank you'."

I raised my eyebrow at him. "Yeah, well last time _I _checked, Kelly's a goil's name. But ya don't see me complainin'." I replied, repreating what the old guy downstairs had called him. He narrowed his eyes at me.

"For your information, me names _Jack_ Kelly. 'nd I don't know why you'se bein' so nasty to me, because I'se jus' tryin' to help ya out."

_Jack Kelly..._ Something about that name wrung a bell. I turned away from him and looked around the room we were in. It was filled with bunk beds from one wall to the opposite wall. Clothes and other possessions were scattered around the floor, as well as tossed over bed posts and hooks on the walls. I realized we were in a newsboy's lodging house.

Then it clicked. _Newsboys. Jack Kelly. The 1899 Newsboys Strike_. I crossed my arms and smirked, although he couldn't see me because my back was turned to him. "So you'se da famous strike leader, huh?" I asked, turning to face him.

He shrugged and grinned, placing his hands behind his head. "Yep. Dat would be me." He replied proudly. "Last article I read 'bout ya, you was on your to Santa Fe... I'm guessin' dat didn't woik out for ya so well, since you'se still heah attemptin' to help someone who don't want your help in fa foist place." I replied in response to his arrogance.

"Yeah, well... Jus' goes to show ya can't believe everythin' ya read." Jack said. I opened my mouth to reply, but he hushed me and pressed his ear to the door.

"I can assure ya officer... all da newsies are out on deir routes at dis hour." Kloppman's voice came loudly from downstairs. He was attempting to give us a heads-up, warning us that the bulls were there and they were planning to come upstairs.

"Oh, am I talkin' loudly? See, I didn't realize... I'se deaf in one ear, so it's hard to tell..." Kloppman lied, trying to cover up for the fact that he was practically screaming.

"Crap... We'se gotta get ya outta heah." Jack whispered. This time, I didn't object. "You know how to get to Brooklyn from heah?" He asked. I shook my head from side to side. I normally just stayed in Manhattan, so I didn't know my way around the other parts of the city.

He sighed. "A'right... Follow me." He whispered, leading me towards the windows. He slid one open and ushered me out onto the fire escape. We quickly climbed down the ladder and around towards the front of the building.

"Blink..." he whispered to himself, averting his attention towards the street. "Uh...'scuse me?" I asked. He hushed me again and waited with his back against the wall. When a boy about my age passed by, he hastily grabbed him and pulled him to the side of the lodging house.

The boy put his hand over his heart and breathed heavily when he saw that it was Jack. "Jeez, Jack! Don't do dat to me... Now ain't da time for secret agent, a'right? I'se gotta get to Tibby's..." Jack ignored his statement.

"Blink, I need ya to do somethin', 'nd it's real important." Jack said. The boy skeptically looked from me, back to Jack, waiting for the task. "I need ya to bring dis goil to Brooklyn."

The kid's eyes widened. "Spot Conlon's territory...? I dunno, Cowboy..." He said cautiously. Jack shook him by the shoulders. "Come on, Blink. Da bulls are afta' her. Jus' tell Spot dat I sent her dere, okay?"

"Aww, why can't you jus' go? Spot... Spot don't really like me much, ya know?" He argued. "I gotta take care of stuff heah. Da cops a'ready assume da newsies started some fight, 'nd I gotta make shoah dey don't accuse any of me boys."

He sighed and nodded slowly, indicating that he would do it. "Great!" Jack exclaimed in a whisper. "Dis is Kid Blink... Blink, dis is..." He tilted his head to the side and stared at me as he realized he didn't know my name. "I don't know who she is, but you'se got plenty of time to find out on da walk to Brooklyn. Now get movin' before da cop comes out 'nd sees ya."

Jack pulled Kid Blink closer, lowering his voice even more. "'nd watch her, a'right? Dis one's a handful..." He warned, assuming I couldn't hear him.

.-:-.-:-.

So any opinions so far? Please review :)

Thanks for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the Disney movie "Newsies"

Heeelllloo there :)

Okay. So usually I'm able to write a few pages a day, but lately I've been a bit slow with it... I know exactly what I want to write, but I just can't seem to get it down on paper, you know? So I might be a little slow with the posting. Sorry.

Anyway, I hope everyone likes it so far. Here's chapter two.

--Start--

"So uh... Chaos, huh? Int'restin' nickname." Kid Blink said. I shrugged. "Guess so." I replied. We had been walking for over two hours, and so far this was the longest conversation we had. "How'd ya get it?" He asked.

"Few years ago, da bulls found me sleepin' out on da street. Since dey didn't have any reason to put me in da refuge, they figured they'd get rid of me by sendin' me to an orphanage. Ya know, try and clear da city of some street rats. Anyway, some of da kids at da orphanage gave me the nickname when I got kicked out." I explained.

"Wait... Da Manhattan Orphanage?" Blink asked. I nodded. "But I thought dey wasn't allowed to kick anyone out..." He replied. I raised my eyebrow at him. "Exactly." I responded.

"Woah... W-What'd ya do?" He asked, sounding a little scared of the answer he might get. "Well, I didn't get along wit most of da kids dere. But dere was dis one guy dat I jus' couldn't stand. We were always fightin, 'nd he was always thinkin' of ways to get me in trouble... So one day I decided to get him back for it."

Blink cautiously raised his eyebrow at me as he waited for me to continue. "I played a few pranks on him... Ya know, put some itchin' powder on his bar of soap, 'nd dumped a few spiders in his sheets, 'nd put glue in his toothpaste... But one of his friends saw me doin' dat stuff and tipped him off 'bout it."

"Ohh... So he switched your stuff with his?" Blink asked. I shook my head. "Worse. He switched his stuff wit da caretaker's. I guess ya can imagine dat she was real mad. So everyone ratted me out 'nd she kicked me back on da streets. Which worked out for everyone, I guess, because that's da way I like it anyways."

Kid Blink didn't say much for the rest of the walk to Brooklyn. He kept a few feet distance away from me the whole time, as if I was suddenly going to turn on him.

.-:-.-:-.

It was starting to get dark by the time we arrived. Blink stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and looked around in all directions as if he was trying to remember something. "Great... We're lost, aren't we?" I asked.

Kid Blink searched the nearby buildings for something familiar. "Not exactly _lost..._ Jus' a little confused, I guess... But we'll find it. Spot's place is right by da docks... So we all we gotta do is follow da smell of fish, and –"

"Blink. We're in Brooklyn. Everything smells like fish." I pointed out. He ignored my comment and randomly chose a street to go down. About an hour after walking in circles, we finally got to a row of tall tenement buildings.

He stopped at one that had a ragged sign over the door. Scratched into the piece of wood, it said "Brooklyn Newsies Lodging House." Blink cautiously knocked on the door and we waited.

The door opened slightly and someone looked out. "Yeah?" They asked. "Conlon... It's Kid Blink. Jack sent me. He needs your help." The door opened all the way to reveal a good-looking guy around my age. Maybe a year older. He was pretty short, but taller than me. Then again, who wasn't?

He motioned for us to go inside with his cane. As I passed him, he looked at me curiously. "How's it rollin', Blink?" He asked, closing the door behind us. Blink shrugged. "A'right... You?"

The boy shrugged. "Fine... Now what's dis 'bout Jackie Boy needin' me help?" Blink motioned to me with a tilt of the head. "Spot, dis is Chaos. She was runnin' from da bulls back in Manhattan, 'nd Cowboy thought she should git outta dere. Guess he's wonderin' if ya can jus' look after her for da time bein'... Least 'til stuff quiets down."

_Crap... I didn't know I was being sent to Brooklyn so I could have a babysitter_. I didn't like that idea at all. All I needed was to get out of Manhattan for a few days. I didn't need anyone to watch over me.

Spot didn't seem too happy about the idea either. He grabbed my arm and tugged me towards him as if he was inspecting me. "I dunno, Blink... We don't usually take in goil's round heah." I smacked his hand off my arm and pulled away. His eyes widened with shock as he stared at me. "Well, ain't _she_ jus' a ray of sunshine..." he muttered sarcastically.

"It was Cowboy's idea... Not mine." Blink said. Spot sighed and thought about it for a few seconds, hooking his thumb underneath his red suspenders. "A'right... I guess I can do Jackie-Boy a favor."

.-:-.-:-.

After Blink left, Spot took my arm again and me through the horde of Brooklyn newsies. He opened a door in the back to reveal a narrow staircase (more like a slanted ladder) that led to a small room on the second floor. "Dis is da bunk room, 'nd dat's where you'se sleepin'." He pointed to a bunk at the far end of the room. It was against the wall, right next to the semi-shattered window.

"Dat's my room." Spot said, motioning to second door. "Stay outta dere and we won't have any problems."

Then he pulled me towards another area. It was sectioned off by a wall that didn't reach all the way to the ceiling. "Dats da wash room. I suggest dat if you want your privacy, ya get up 15 minutes before da rest of da boys." He instructed.

I pulled my arm away from his grip. "Would ya stop tuggin' me 'round like dat? I ain't ya pet dog..." I said nastily. He froze and his look turned sinister. "Do you _know_ who I am?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes. "Sure do. You're Spot Conlon. Leader of da Brooklyn newsies, helped out in da 1899 Newsboys' strike." I replied. He raised his eyebrow at me, but smirked. "Yeah. Dat's exactly right. And people don't disrespect me, ya got it?" he warned.

"Is that right?" I asked, crossing my arms and shifting my weight to the other foot. Spot's eyes narrowed at me. "Look. Dere ain't no caretaker here dat says whedda ya stay or whedda ya go. I'm in charge, and if you mess wit me I'se got no problem throwin' ya outta heah."

He turned to walk out of the bunk room again. "Terribly sorry, your highness." I called after him in a voice dripping with sarcasm. He stopped dead in his tracks, but didn't turn around. Instead, he took a deep breath that was filled with aggravation and clenched his fists before leaving the bunk room.

.-:-.-:-.

"Hey... Hey. Git up." I groaned and buried my face deeper in the pillow. _Wait... Pillow?_ I thought. _Oh yeah... the Brooklyn lodging house._ Someone started poking me annoyingly in the back. "Bug off, would ya?" I mumbled, my words slurring together. I tried to swat their hand away.

"Git up!" The voice demanded again. I opened one of my eyes to see Spot standing impatiently by my bunk. "Oh great. _you_. What time is it?" I asked, raising my head off the pillow and squinting so the lights didn't burn my eyes.

"5:45." He responded casually. "What!? You'se crazy!?" I rolled over again, turning my back to him and pulling the covers up to my head.

He sighed in aggravation. "Dammit, Chaos. Get up 'nd get in da shower!" He demanded. "Bum off 'nd let me sleep." I muttered in response. I wasn't exactly a morning person. Spot ripped the blankets off me and I sat up immediately. "What's da big idea!?" I yelled, causing the other newsies to look over at us.

"Get in da shower!" He repeated. I raised my eyebrow at him. "No!" I shouted back at him. The guys' jaws dropped open as they watched me disobey their leader. Spot's whole body seemed to tense up, but he didn't say anything.

After a few seconds of staring me down, he turned on his heel and walked away, muttering angrily to himself. I smirked as I watched him leave, feeling accomplished. Thinking I had won the fight, I lied down again and closed my eyes.

I was wrong, though. A few seconds later, I heard quick footsteps coming back over to me. "Shower's comin' to you..." Spot growled angrily. Before I knew it, I was soaked from head to toe in freezing cold water, and so was my mattress. I screamed and got tangled in the wet sheets as I tried to scramble out of the bed. I rolled to the floor with a loud _thump_ and looked up to see Spot standing over me with an empty bucket.

His eyes blazed with anger as he stared down at me, but other than that he kept his cool, smirking at his victory. He obviously didn't like that I had caused a scene. _Especially_ in front of his newsies. He was the leader, and no one degraded his power in front of his boys.

"We're leaving in 15 minutes. Be ready." He instructed.

.-:-.-:-.

"I don't understand why I'se gotta sell." I said stubbornly. Spot kept a few paces in front of me as we walked, and I strolled behind. "It's a 'Newsboys' lodging house.' You're gonna stay there, you're gonna sell." He told me, keeping his gaze straight ahead.

"Exactly. _Newsboys'._ I ain't a boy." I replied. Spot suddenly stopped and whirled around, causing me to almost bump into him. "Chaos... Ya don't dress like a goil. Ya definately don't got da manners of a goil. You act _nuttin_' like a goil. So if ya decide to change dat, let me know and I'll stop treatin' ya like one of da boys."

As much as I hated to admit it, he had a point. I sighed reluctantly and continued following after him. Usually, I wasn't this much of a pain in the ass. But Spot Conlon's ego was too big for his own good. _Someone_ had to let him know that he wasn't in charge of everyone.

"I'm hungry..." I whined. Honestly, food was one of the last priorities on my list. But I intended to be as annoying as possible to give him payback for the rude awakening I received that morning.

He groaned and reached into the sack he was carrying over his shoulder. "Heah." He replied, tossing an apple to me. I caught it and examined it, raising an eyebrow. "Do ya _normally_ carry 'round fruit wit ya?" I asked.

Spot rolled his eyes and shook his head. "It was gonna be me lunch... But hell, at dis point I'll give anythin' up jus' to get you to shut yer trap." He replied. I smiled slightly and jogged to catch up with him, tossing the apple back to him. "Forget it. Ya probably poisoned it, for all I know."

.-:-.-:-.

Please review if you can, guys. I'd love to hear your opinions so far.

Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I'm sure you guys know how this goes by now... I don't own any of the characters in this story besides Chaos and the others you don't recognize from the movie "Newsies", blah blah blah and here we go.

Alright. So I wasn't planning on posting a chapter at all today, since school is the devil (GGGRRRRR) and I've been to busy to write lately. That's why this chapter is really short. But better short than non-existent, right? Ignore that growl. Had a second of rage there.

Maybe I can keep them coming really often if I chop the chapters down a little... However, if you guys would rather, I'll post a long one roughly every three days? I dunno. Give me your views on the topic and I'll figure out what I'm gonna do.

.-:-.-:-.

Dis sellin' spot is dead." Spot commented, getting somewhat discouraged. "Git up, Chaos. We'se movin' again." He told me. I groaned, but didn't move from my place on the cool grass. I had been sitting there for the last half an hour, watching the clouds pass through the breaks between the leaves and branches of a tree.

"Again?! Why can't we jus' stay in one place?!" I complained. Spot inhaled slowly, trying desperately hard not to lose his temper. "Because, Chaos." He muttered through gritted teeth. "Dere is no point in sellin' where dere ain't no people. Customers don't stay in one place, so neitha' do we." He explained.

When I didn't reply, Spot continued. "Besides. I dunno what you'se complaining 'bout, because last time I checked _you'se_ been sittin' on yer ass while _I'se_ been doin' all da sellin'. Now git up."

"I think you'll learn, Spot Conlon, dat if you'se nicer to people, you'll get a better response." Using a sweet sarcastic tone of voice, I plastered a smile on my face. He didn't look amused. Instead, he looked like he was going to beat the ever loving tar out of the next person who looked at him the wrong way.

He stomped over to me and picked up my pile of papers, which, by the way, hadn't decreased the least bit since I got them. Spot combined my pile with his and rested the papers on his shoulder, supporting them with his arm.

Then in one swift movement, he scooped me up from the ground and threw me over his other shoulder. "Hey! Put me down!" I yelled. He ignored me and kept walking towards the street. I yelled and screamed and kicked and furiously pounded on his back with my fists. "Put... Me... Down!" I repeated. Spot didn't stop, though. He continued carrying me effortlessly and steadily, paying no attention to my protests.

When we reached the sidewalk, people walking down the street turned and gave us strange looks as we passed them. "Pipe down, Chaos." He mumbled angrily. In response, I just screamed louder.

Deciding he wasn't in the mood to be arrested for kidnapping, he growled in frustration and dropped me onto my feet. Then he hastily pushed me up against the nearest building. Dropping the papers to the ground, he put one hand on either side of my body against the wall to block me in. Spot brought his face dangerously close to mine. So close that I stopped myself from breathing.

Despite how pissed off he looked, I found myself thinking something unexpected. _Woah... He's real cute..._

I gulped and pressed myself as far back against the wall as I could. As I stared into his grey-blue eyes, I was afraid to keep eye contact but at the same time afraid to look away.

It was intimidating when he yelled, but he frightened me more when he was silent. "What is _wrong_ wit you?" He whispered slowly, finally breaking the silence. He narrowed his eyes at me, but the flash of anger disappeared for a few seconds. For once Spot looked at me in a curious way, instead of a glare.

I suddenly forgot about his attractiveness as anger surged through my body and I regained my nerve. I pushed him away from me, freeing myself from his trap. "Me!? What's wrong wit _me?!_" I asked in disbelief. "You are da most cocky self-centered puny egotistical jackass I ever met!" I yelled back at him. "And ya wonder what's wrong wit _me!?_"

I could have sworn I saw a gleam of hurt in his eyes for a split second, but it was gone when I looked for it again. His mouth twisted into a smirk. "Yeah, so I'se been told."

.-:-.-:-.

I was in no way, shape, or form cut out for selling newspapers. As you probably noticed by now, I wasn't much of a people-person. I wasn't patient or calm with customers. Instead, I was hot-tempered and discouraged easily. The ruthless summer sun beat down on my shoulders, not making my job any easier. But the part I hated most about selling papes?

Spot Conlon. He was better than me at it. So much better. It gave him a reason to make his ego even bigger, if that was possible. He knew exactly what article to use to attract a certain group of people. His distinct selling cry put any other newsies' to shame, and he could charm girls that were passing by into purchasing a newspaper, simply by shooting them his famous smirk.  
By mid afternoon, Spot was almost done selling every single one of his papers. I looked at the stack of papes under my arm, becoming disheartened. The grand total of 7 papers that I sold didn't really make a difference to the height of the pile.

I went over and collapsed on a bench on the sidewalk, facing the cobblestone street. I tossed the papers down beside me and let my head fall backwards, making a faint _clunk_ sound as it hit the backrest of the metal bench.

"Dis is miserable... What am I still doin' heah?" I asked myself, muttering under my breath. I slowly picked my head up again and snuck a glance at Spot. He took off his hat for a split second, running his fingers quickly through his golden-brown hair. I could feel my heart starting to beat faster as I watched him. Then the hat was back on his head, and he was back to shouting headlines.

I looked away and shook my head violently to get rid of the thought. _No. I hate him. He's a complete jerk. _I told myself. I searched my mind, looking for other reasons why I was still in Brooklyn when I didn't want to be. Reasons that were actually logical.

_I'm here because Jack told me to be. _

_I'm here because I need a place to hide from the bulls. _

_I'm here because I'm tired of living on the streets. _

_I'm here because I need a job. _

But my mind returned to the first reason. I cautiously looked up and my eyes found Spot again. Selling his last paper, he turned and saw me staring at him. His well-known smirk spread across his face as he walked towards me.

"I know I'se extremely good-lookin', Chaos. But shouldn't ya be sellin' yer papes instead of gawkin' at me?" He announced in an overly- smug tone. I snorted at him and crossed my arms. "Yeah, right. You wish. Dat'd be da day..." I replied.

He crossed his arms also and shifted his weight. The smirk on his lips widened, telling me that he wasn't convinced. "I wasn't "gawkin." I was simply plottin' how to kill ya... I'm still decidin' between stabbin' ya or pushin' ya off a buildin'." I sneered.

Spot grinned and raised his eyebrow, and I tried not to blush as he stared down at me. "Dat's bull, Chaos." He said finally. Spot went around the side of the bench and picked up half my newspapers. As he walked behind me, he leaned in extremely close to the side of my face.

"You was practically droolin'." He whispered into my ear, causing me to get goose bumps down my neck. I attempted to suppress the shiver so it wasn't obvious that he had given me the chills despite the summer heat.

I snapped out of the daze and picked up the rest of my papers that Spot had left behind, running after him. "Hey! What're you doin' wit me papes?" I asked, jogging to catch up with his rapid strides. "Helpin' ya. At dis rate, you'll never be done." He told me, keeping his gaze ahead of him.

I stopped dead in my tracks. _Woah... Did he jus' offer to do somethin' __**civil**__ for me? _

It's official. The world is coming to an end.

.-:-.-:-.

::BOOM::. Yep. That was the sound of the earth exploding. Dear me.

Anyway, Thanks for reading, guys. Please review if you get the chance... Oh, and one more thing.

Option number one: Maria should post a chapter as often as possible, even if they are extremely short.

Option number two: Maria should post a chapter every couple of days, but it'll be a long chapter.

Option number three: It doesn't matter what Maria posts, just as long as she stops talking in the third person because it's creeping everyone out.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't claim ownership, nor am I trying to make any money off of, the original characters from "Newsies." The only characters I own are Chaos and the Brooklyn newsies that you don't recognize. So please don't sue me.

So I'm back (fairly sooner than I expected) with a new chapter... Yeah, it's a bit short. But better than nothing, right?

Quick thanks to all the people who have been reviewing. You're the best.

.-:-.-:-.

"Chaos... Chaos. **CHAOS**!" I sat up instantly in my bunk, smacking my head on the bed above me. "Ughh..." I groaned, rubbing my forehead with the palm of my hand.

I turned my head sideways to see Spot standing by my bunk impatiently with his arms crossed over his chest. "Yes?" I muttered through gritted teeth. "Get up. We'se leavin' to sell soon."

Slowly, I stood up from my bed with my eyes barely even open yet. As I walked past Spot, I hit my foot against the leg of the bed and tripped myself.

And so began my second day as a Brooklyn newsie, starting the same way as my first. On the hard wooden floor of the bunk room with Spot Conlon standing over me. At least this time he didn't have an empty bucket.

He rolled his eyes and looked down on me disapprovingly. "What a klutz..." he muttered, walking towards the wash room. I shut my eyes tightly without standing up and took a deep breath to calm my rage.

"Don't worry... You'll get used to wakin' up dis early." I opened my eyes to see a guy standing next to me. "Right, and Conlon writes poetry in his free time." I replied sarcastically, pushing myself up from the floor. The guy laughed and helped me the rest of the way to my feet.

"I'm Ghost." He told me. I could immediately see the reason behind his nickname. Although his hair was a brown color and his eyes were brown, also, his skin was extremely pale. It was almost a milky white color with freckles sprinkled across the bridge of his nose. "The nickname suits ya." I said.

He smirked. "So does yours. I ain't seen anyone give Spot dis much trouble since... Actually, I'se never seen anyone give Spot dis much trouble." I grinned at his statement.

"So'd ya meet da rest of da guys yet?" Ghost asked. I shook my head, signifying that I hadn't. "I'll introduce ya, den." He offered, motioning to the Brooklyn newsies who were hurrying to get ready for the day.

"Da one who's over by da windows, dat's Haggle. Next to him is Gizmo 'nd Flint. Sloth's da one who's still in his bed, and dat's Jinxey diggin' through da dresser. Probably lost his lucky hat again."

Ghost started leading me towards the washroom. Then he stood in the doorway and pointed out more newsies. "Over by da sinks, there's Nudge, Wafers, 'nd Dynamite. Brawler's da guy who's yellin' at dat kid for takin' his bar of soap. Da kid who's 'bout to get his ass kicked by Brawler, dat's Pipsqueak. Of course ya know Spot, 'nd to da left of him is Spit-Ball. To da right is Cheese. At da far end of da room is Oats..."

Ghost took one last look around the washroom. "'nd dat's all of 'em, I think." I nodded and made my way to the closest sink. Ghost took the one next to me and turned on the faucet. "I dunno if dere's any point to learnin' dere names." I said. "None of 'em talk to me anyway."

He laughed, splashing water on his face. "Don't worry 'bout it... Dey're jus' a little intimidated, I guess. They'se kinda got dis idea of "If she talks to da leader of Brooklyn like dat, imagine how she's gonna talk to me", ya know? They'll get over it, though."

I shrugged, drying my face with a towel. "I'se gonna be outta heah pretty soon, anyway. I'm jus' stayin' until da bulls in Manhattan forget about me, which should only be a couple more days." I told him, starting to brush my teeth.

"Ah... You'se a Manhattan newsie?" Ghost asked. I shook my head and made a "Nuh uh" sound that was muffled by the toothpaste in my mouth. I spit into the sink. "Dis is my foist time sellin' papes. Back in Manhattan, I'se usually on me own."

"So why don't ya stay heah?" Ghost suggested. "'Least ya got a job 'nd a place to stay." He added, shrugging. "Nah... I'm guessin' Spot don't really want me heah." I said.

I combed through my hair and redid the two braids that hung over my shoulders. "Maybe da two of you can learn to be civil to one anudder." Ghost pointed out. I laughed and shook my head. "No. Don't think so."

"I can see you ain't willin' to try any more den Spot is, so forget I mentioned anythin'." He said. "Anyway," Ghost turned off the faucet. "Why don't ya sell wit me and some of da guys today. Can't hoit to get to know a few of 'em."

"Eh, I dunno if I can. Jack asked Spot to look afta' me while I was heah, like I need a babysitter or somethin'. Anyway, Spot refuses to let me outta his sight, so I think I'se stuck sellin' wit him." I replied.

We heard a voice from the bunk room. "Chaos! Could ya be any slower!? Let's go!" I peeked out of the washroom and saw Spot standing impatiently against the doorframe of the bunk room with his arms crossed.

I sighed and threw the towel over the side of the sink. "Gotta go. Our royal majesty awaits." I said sarcastically. Ghost stifled a laugh and waved to me as I left.

.-:-.-:-.

Spot and I walked in silence to the circulation desk. We waited in line in silence. And we bought our papes in silence, too. We never talked unless we were shooting insults back and forth.

As I followed Spot to our angle for the day, we came across two boys. One was extremely small, no bigger than four-foot-ten. I knew I had seen him at the Brooklyn Lodging house, but I couldn't place his name.

I had never seen the other newsie before, but he was huge. Twice the size of the younger one, he had broad shoulders and was at least 6 feet tall. He was holding the kid's hat way above his head, teasing him. "C'mon!! It was me older brudder's hat! Give it back!" The kid protested, jumping to try and reach it.

"Look kid... Gimme whatever money you'se got on you, 'nd I'll give ya da hat back. Otherwise, it might jus' end up off da side of da Brooklyn Bridge. And dat would shoah be a shame." The bigger newsie warned.

"Give him the hat back." Spot stated loudly. He clenched his fists at his side and waited for a response. Even though the other boy, who had his back turned to Spot, was three heads taller, Spot didn't sound the least bit afraid.

"Why don't you jus' bug off 'nd mind yer own—" He turned around to face us. "Spot!" he exclaimed, dropping the hat at his feet. "I-I didn't realize he was one of yer newsies." He stuttered.

"Maybe you should check next time. Get outta heah." Spot commanded, motioning to the street with a tilt of his head. The guy nodded quickly and I watched him take off down the block.

Spot picked up the newsboy cap and handed it to the younger kid. "Here's ya hat, Pipsqeak." He said. The boy took it and grinned at Spot while putting it back on his head. "Thanks, Conlon."

"Yeah, yeah... Don't mention it, okay? Jus' hurry up 'nd get your papes."

.-:-.-:-.

"Woah... he was huge! At least a few feet bigger den you! How'd ya get him so scared!?" I exclaimed, catching up to Spot's side. A smirk spread across his face. I should have known he would let the comment get to his head. He was Spot Conlon, after all.

"Dey don't call me da King of Brooklyn for nuttin'." Spot said, giving me his best "I'm-so-tough" look. I rolled my eyes and stuck my hands in my pockets. "Bet dey don't call ya da King of Brooklyn _at all_" I muttered under my breath.

Before I realized it, Spot had shoved me off the sidewalk and into a puddle. I landed on the ground, covered from head to toe in mud. I slowly sat up and glared at him. "I told ya not to answer me back, Chaos." He said threateningly, his usual smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

"I'm. Going. To. Kill. You." I growled through gritted teeth. Quickly getting to my feet, I ran and practically jumped at him, knocking him to the ground. The back of Spot's head hit the patch of soft grass below him and I hovered above him, nearly leaning the weight of my entire body on him so he couldn't get up.

Just as I pulled my arm back to punch him, my fist froze in the air. He kept a steady gaze on me, showing me that he wasn't afraid. Spot's icy-blue eyes were calm, but they had a hint of puzzlement in them. His eyes fascinated me and I slowly lowered my fist.

His face was a foot from mine and we were both silent. Spot stared at me without faltering and I stared back for at least a good minute. His expression finally returned to irritation again. "Git off me." he growled, pushing me off of him so I tumbled to the ground.

Spot stood up and brushed his clothes off. "I woulda at least hoped dat you had enough guts to punch me." He sneered before walking off. I didn't follow him this time, though. I sat on the grass in confusion and watched him leave.

.-:-.-:-.

As you guys can see, I've decided on getting short chapters out as fast as I can, rather than long ones every few days.

Thanks for reading. Reviews would be really appreciated. I'd love to hear what everyone things of how this story is going.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't claim ownership over any of the characters in this story besides Chaos and the Brooklyn newsies (except for Spot). Everyone else from the movie "Newsies" is property of Disney and some other people.

Fellow-newsie-freaks-- Whadda ya hear, whadda ya say:)

Hi there, guys. So here's a new chapter. And here's some good news. It's Friday, which means I have the entire weekend to write. Maybe Saturday and Sunday I'll post a longer chapter each day. I can't wait until summer... Pretty much all I have is 2 more weeks and finals and then I'm done. Then I can write all the time. I also have yet another idea for a new story, so I'll be working on that one when I finish this.

.-:-.-:-.

After Spot took off, I didn't see him for the rest of the afternoon. I sold alone, which proved to be twice as difficult as selling with someone else.

I did my best to brush off most of the mud from the puddle Spot had pushed me in. Still, some of it still stuck to my clothes and made me more than uncomfortable the whole day.

I couldn't go back to the lodging house to change my clothes during the day, though. Partly because I didn't know how to get there from where I was, and partly because I didn't have any other clean clothes to change into.

It got later and later, becoming more difficult to find customers as the sun crept lower in the sky. I gave up on selling and decided to finally find my way back to the lodging house. Following my sense of direction, I walked down street after street and ended up at the docks.

I was getting close. The lodging house was on one of the blocks right off the pier. As I turned to walk in the direction of the apartment buildings, I thought better of it.

Approaching the water, I looked down at it. The teetering sun on the horizon caused the small waves to have a bright orange shimmer to them. Even though it was dusk, the air still felt dense and hot. I decided the water would be a cool relief from the air, and I needed a way to rinse the mud off my clothes anyway.

I untied my shoes, leaving them on the side of the dock along with my hat. I untied my braids and kept the two rubber-bands around my wrist. Then I stood on the edge of the wood and pushed off into a dive. It was cold at first, but as I resurfaced I got used to the temperature.

I floated on my back and stared up at the sky, simply letting the weak current push me in any direction. I would stay like that for minutes at a time, only kicking my feet silently underneath the surface to keep me afloat.

For about fifteen minutes, I closed my eyes and just drifted. I only opened them when I heard a rhythmic splashing sound, only to realize that I had floated about 50 feet away from where I had jumped into the water. The sky wasn't above me anymore. Now wood planks were about a foot above my head. I had floated underneath another dock.

I positioned myself upright in the water again and realized that the splashing sound was coming from the edge of the dock. Someone was swinging their legs back and forth, kicking the water with the end of their toes.

Cautiously, I swam around a wooden boat that was attached to the dock with a rope. I held onto the side of the boat and inched my way around, keeping myself hidden from view. As I got to the bow, I peeked over and saw that it was Spot Conlon sitting on the edge of the dock.

Without knowing I was even watching him, he stared out over the surface of the water. His usual smirk, the angry fire in his eyes, his rough exterior... They were all gone.

His legs continued to swing steadily over the water. Spot's smoky-blue eyes just lingered towards the horizon, and he looked more calm and more pensive than I had ever seen him before. I could sit there and just stare at him forever.

Suddenly, something slimy swam past my legs, brushing against one of them. A gasp escaped my mouth, and Spot looked over at me. My eyes grew wide as I sank lower beneath the side of the boat.

Too late. He had already seen me. "Chaos!?!" He yelled, quickly getting to his feet. "Chaos, what da hell is you doin'!?"

I took a mouthful of air and ducked under the water, swimming quickly in the opposite direction. While underwater, I heard a splash that meant that Spot had jumped in after me. I desperately kicked my legs and pushed myself forward with my arms, only coming to the surface when I felt my lungs were going to explode from lack of oxygen.

I kept swimming, unaware of where I was going or if Spot was even following me anymore. I had ended up near a shore somewhere, covered in huge rocks. As I pushed my head above the surface for air, one of the rocks cut my thigh with a sharp edge when my leg brushed across it. Pain shot through my body as the salt water made the wound sting. I dragged myself up onto the shore and rested on a flat rock as I searched the surface for Spot, but I couldn't find him. I assumed I had lost him.

Suddenly, Spot came up from under the water and gasped for air, dripping wet. I stared at him as we both desperately tried to catch our breath. "Why... Da hell... We're you spyin'... on me?" he stuttered. He was still knee-deep in water, so he trudged up the rocks and came closer to me.

"Hey! I aksed you a question!" He demanded. "I wasn't _spyin'_ on you, Conlon. I went for a swim, lost track of where I was goin', 'nd happened to come across _you_." I sneered.

"Oh, is dat so?" Spot said sarcastically. I nodded slowly.

Alright, I had been spying on him. But I didn't really mean to. I couldn't bring myself to tear my gaze away from him. What was the matter with me? I was supposed to hate this guy, and now I found myself unable to reply with a sarcastic remark. I was tongue-tied.

Spot sighed and took a few more steps towards me. His eyes wandered down to the deep slash in the fabric right above my knee. There was blood all over my thigh. "Dat's bleedin' real bad. Can you walk?" He asked.

I shrugged. "I dunno..." I said. I unsteadily got to my feet, shutting my eyes tightly and gritting my teeth to avoid yelling out. "Yeah... kind of." I choked out. I was able to support myself, but every time I took a step pain would surge up my leg. "How far's da lodgin' house from heah?" I asked.

Spot sighed again. "Too far for you to walk in dat condition. C'mon, follow me. I got an idea." With Spot's help, I was able to get back up onto the pier. I limped behind him as he led me to a nearby dock.

There was an old fishing boat tied off to the wooden columns on the dock. The same one I had been watching him from behind. It looked like it hadn't been used in years. Most of the white paint had long since chipped off the sides, showing the brown planks underneath. The sail had holes in it almost everywhere, and the ropes that pulled the sail were frayed and ready to snap.

The boat wasn't small, but it wasn't big either. It was about 10 feet in length and could hold roughly 5 people. Following Spot, I climbed over the side of the boat. I sat down, using the back of the boat to lean my back up against. "I'll be back in a couple minutes. Stay heah." Spot commanded. I rolled my eyes. "You say dat like I could actually leave if I wanted to." I retorted.

Spot sneered at my comment and ran off down the pier. I listened to his footsteps against the dock disappear and then I waited.

.-:-.-:-.

Hm... Spot and Chaos alone in a boat? Who do ya thinks gonna end up killing the other first?

Thanks for reading, and thanks to the people who reviewed. If you haven't reviewed yet, please do so :D I'd love to hear what you think so far. Any comments or criticism is welcome.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from the Disney movie "Newsies."

AHH I'm so sorry I didn't get a chapter out yesterday, guys. My internet was driving me crazy, and by the time it was working I was exhausted. However, I did do a whole lot of writing, so maybe I'll get two chapters posted today :)

.-:-.-:-.

In roughly 10 minutes, Spot came back with a glass bottle filled with water and a piece of cloth. I rolled up my pants so that the deep cut on my thigh was visible. Spot kneeled and poured some of the water onto it, cleaning it out. I winced and he looked up to meet my eyes. "Oh, jus' suck it up and wrap it." He told me, tossing the cloth towards me.

I carefully started to wind the fabric around my wound. It was quiet for a few minutes as I did so. "So you never told me why you was spyin' on me." I didn't look up, but I could hear the smirk in his voice. I sighed. "I told ya, Conlon. I was not spyin' on you."

"You was hidin' behind a boat practically droolin' over me... again." He sank to the floor and leaned up against the side of the boat. He sighed and placed his hands behind the back of his head. "Face it, Chaos. Ya jus' don't wanna admit dat you, like da hundreds of udder goils in dis city, is fallin' for me. Me charm is jus' irresistible."

I scoffed at him. "You? Charming? Dat's hilarious." I replied. "Hey! I'se got plenty of charm!" Spot argued. "No, you'se got plenty of ego. And if so many goils are after you, den why don't ya have a goilfriend?" I asked mockingly. His smirk disappeared and he looked up at me, shocked that I had made a comment like that.

"I... I jus' don't want one. I don't need a goil." He said. "And why's dat?" I challenged. Spot narrowed his eyes at me and paused for a second. "I'se got me territory and I'se got me boys."

I sighed as I finished wrapping my leg. "Where are we, anyway?" I asked, attempting to change the subject. Spot raised his eyebrow. "We'se in a boat, genius." He replied sarcastically. "No kiddin'. I mean _why_ are we in a boat?"

Spot pointed to a small shop, no bigger than a shed, about 20 feet from the pier. "See dat store over dere? It's a fishin' shop... Da guy who owns it, dis is his boat. But he don't use it anymore, so sometimes he lets me hang out heah." He explained.

I nodded slowly and let my head drop backwards. "I figured it was a good place to stop 'nd fix up yer leg, since da lodgin' house is kind of far..." Spot paused for a second and took a deep breath of the salty air before continuing. "I really love it heah." He said, staring off towards the horizon. The last few rays of sun caught his hair, giving off a golden shine to it.

Spot couldn't see me looking at him, but I snuck glances every now and then while I rebraided my damp hair. Then I tore my eyes away from him and changed my position so I was lying down on my back, facing the sky. "Tell me when dat cut stops bleedin'. Den we'll start headin' back, okay?" Spot said. "Okay." I replied.

Spot also lied down, leaving as much distance between us as possible. _Jeez... He really can't stand me, can he?_ The thought made me feel guilty for some reason. Still, I couldn't help the butterflies in my stomach as I listened to him breath. Neither of us said anything while the sky got darker and the stars began to come out.

Small waves hit the side of the boat, rocking us lightly back and forth. Unable to keep my eyes open any longer, I closed them for a few seconds and fell asleep.

.-:-.-:-.

I felt the warm sun on my face and shut my eyes even tighter, trying to block out the light. "Why won't dey jus' keep da blinds closed..." I groaned.

I heard the calls of a few seagulls, but they sounded so close. The floor lightly swayed below me and there was a rhythmic sloshing sound of water hitting wood. "What da...?" I mumbled, opening one of my eyes. As my vision adjusted, I saw that I was on the floor of the old sail boat. The faint pain in my thigh came back and I remembered what happened with Spot.

_Where __**is**__ Spot?_ I thought. Suddenly, I felt that something was around my waist. I looked down and saw that Spot's arm was wrapped around me from behind. My eyes grew wide and my breath caught in my throat. I didn't dare move.

_Okay, Chaos. Calm down. We both dozed off last night, and he put his arm around me in his sleep. No big deal..._ Who was I kidding? If he was to wake up with his arm around my waist, it would be more than embarrassing for both of us.

I took a deep breath and cautiously lifted his hand, trying to squirm out of his grasp without waking him. Spot groaned in his sleep and tightened his grip, pulling me closer to him. I shut my eyes tightly, hoping I hadn't woken him up.

After a few seconds, he stopped shuffling around and was still again.

"C-Chaos...?" A voice asked from the dock. I lifted my head slightly to see Ghost staring at me. Spot shifted in his sleep, making his face visible to Ghost. "SPOT!?" He yelled.

Spot's eyes shot open. "Woah!" he yelled, jumping to his feet. He glanced from the boat, to me, to Ghost. "G-Ghost... What are ya doin' heah?!" Spot asked frantically.

"I... Neidda of ya came back to da lodgin' house last night... So I jus' figured I'd go lookin' for ya incase somethin' was wrong!" Ghost explained himself quickly. "I uh- I can see dat both of you is jus' fine..." He muttered, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck. "So I'se jus' gonna be goin' now..."

Spot quickly regained the usual calm, intimidating look on his face. "Not everythin's fine, Ghost. Chaos hoit her leg." Ghost turned and looked down, noticing the blood-stained cloth around my thigh. "I'se gonna need you to take her back to da lodgin' house. If she's feelin' better later, sell wit her." He commanded. Ghost nodded. "A'right, Spot." He agreed.

"Good." Spot confirmed. "I'se gotta be on me way." He muttered, quickly stepping out of the boat and pushing past Ghost. I stared after him, tilting my head slightly to the side as he strode down the pier and out of view.

"C'mon, Chaos. You hoid him. Let's get ya back to da lodgin' house." I painfully got to my feet and climbed over the edge of the boat onto the dock. "You okay?" He asked. I nodded, biting my lip. The wound felt even more sore today.

I found a comfortable pace that I could walk at without my leg throbbing, and Ghost led me in the direction of the lodging house. Neither of us said anything, both feeling a little uncomfortable.

Ghost finally decided to break the silence. "I'd watch it, if I was you." He said. I looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "It's a lost cause fallin' for him, ya know. Spot don't love anybody but himself." He warned.

I lowered my gaze to the ground again as I shuffled slowly beside him. "I ain't fallin' for him. I couldn't walk back to da lodgin' house right away, 'nd we both jus' fell asleep." Ghost didn't look convinced. "Believe me. We hate each udder's guts."

He sighed and stuck his hands in his pockets, approaching the door of the lodging house. "Whatever you say, Chaos." He mumbled.

.-:-.-:-.

Hmm... Awkward.

Okay. So Thanks for reading, and please review if you get the chance. Everyones opinions would be really helpful.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own, nor claim ownership over, any of the original characters from the movie "Newsies."

Hi guys. Alright, so I got a lot of writing done this weekend. Maybe I'll be able to get the next few chapters out fairly fast.

Quick thanks to everyone who has been reviewing. Especially those who review normally-- Your comments are so unbelievably helpful.

.-:-.-:-.

I rested most of the day, and by late afternoon the pain in my leg started to recede. I left the building for a while and was able to sell about 2 dozen papers with Ghost before it got dark.

By 10 at night, Spot still wasn't back yet. Since he wasn't yelling orders at me like usual, I spent most of my time with Ghost. He taught me a few basic card games and before long I was playing with the rest of the guys.

"I'll raise ya two." Gizmo said.

The last four players, including myself, threw in 2 coins. "I'll raise everyone 1 more." Wafers said, tossing in another penny. "Don't do it... You'se way close to 21." Haggle whispered to me. He had already gotten out a few rounds ago. I ignored him and tossed in the extra penny anyway.

"A'right. Dealing." Jinxey announced. Jinxey put his card down and smirked. "I'm stayin'." He said.

I already had a score of 18. "Hit me." I said. Jinxey dealt me a four and I got one point over 21. "Dammit." I muttered, backing out of the game. "Told ya to drop out, Chaos." Haggle teased. "Ah, shut it." I muttered.

We all looked up when the door opened. Spot trudged into the bunk room. "Heya Spot." The guys greeted him. He nodded in their direction and everyone else went back to our game. However, I kept my eyes on Spot. Instead of going into his room like he usually did, he quietly slid open the window and climbed out onto the roof.

I nudged Ghost, who was sitting next to me, and motioned towards the window. Ghost shrugged. "Somethin's probably buggin' him. He goes out dere when he's got stuff on his mind." He explained. "Oh... Shouldn't someone go see if he's a'right?" I asked. A smirk spread across his face and he raised his eyebrow at me.

"No? Haven't ya loined not to mess with Spot when he's in a bad mood?" Ghost said. "Besides... Since when do you care anyways?" I shrugged and stood up, leaving the dice game forgotten. "Chaos, where ya goin'?" Ghost asked, grabbing my wrist.

"To talk to him." I replied, trying to pull away. However, he kept a firm hold on me. "Chaos, listen to me, a'right? C'mere." He said, signifying that he didn't want the rest of the room to hear what he had to tell me.

I rolled my eyes and knelt down next to him. "What?" I asked. "Spot ain't gonna talk to ya. Believe me, I know him." Ghost said, keeping his voice down. "Spot _used _to be me best friend. Before he was leader 'nd all. But den da old leader took off, 'nd Spot took his place. Now he don't got any friends. All he's got is followers, so you'se wastin' your time."

"Still worth a shot, I guess." I replied, standing up again. Ghost shook his head and sighed as I slid the window open and stepped outside.

.-:-.-:-.

The roof was only about 6 feet from the window to the edge. It had a slight tilt to it, but for the most part it was almost level. Spot was sitting towards the edge with his arms folded over both his knees. When Spot heard me close the window, he looked over his shoulder.

Judging by the look he gave me, I assumed he would tell me to leave or begin shooting insults at me. But after a few seconds, his facial expression got softer. "Hey." Spot mumbled, turning around again to face the city.

"Hey yourself." I replied, walking over to sit next to him. I thought I could see a smile pulling at the side of his mouth, but then it was gone and he showed no emotion again.

I glanced sideways at him. He had the same mellow look in his eyes that he had the day before when he was sitting on the dock. I waited for him to say something, but he didn't. His eyes just searched the scenery in front of us.

I followed his gaze onto the city. A few lights were on in the windows of buildings, but the rows of streets were completely dark. In one direction were the skyscrapers, and in the other direction was the Brooklyn Bridge. The river below it was black and still, like a layer of tar had been poured across it.

"A'right... It's been roughly 60 seconds 'nd you haven't even _tried_ to push me off dis roof yet..." I pointed out. Spot actually smiled. Not a smirk, for once. A real smile. Then it faded as quickly as it had come. "Spot... What's da matter?" I asked.

He looked up and stared back at me. I expected his reply to be '_None of your business..._', but it wasn't. "Guess I got a lot of stuff on me mind." He answered. I could tell in his icy-blue eyes, for that split second, he was being honest. For once Spot had gotten rid of the wall he put up against everyone else.

"Anythin' I can help wit?" I asked. He quickly shut me out again, turning away and shaking his head. "No... I think I'se jus' gonna get some sleep." He muttered, standing up and walking to the window.

I waited until he was back inside before I let myself sigh. I wanted to help him more than anything, but I couldn't understand why. We hated each other...

And that's when I began to question myself. _Hate_ is such a powerful word... Did I really hate him? The two of us just had a civil conversation, without fighting back and forth. _Maybe I don't hate him... _I finally decided.

As I got up to go inside, I found myself wondering what I actually felt for him.

.-:-.-:-.

Okay. So this chapter was a bit on the short side. (Sorry about that.) But I wanted to get two out today, so this one had to be short.

I hope everyone likes this story so far, and thanks for reading. Reviews would be great :)


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the Disney movie "Newsies."

Hey guys :) And how is everyone today?

I would usually post chapters later in the night, but I've got a school concert thing later on (yay for band nerds) so I figured I'd just post it now. I tried to make it a little longer than yesterday's chapter. Enjoy :)

.-:-.-:-.

The sound of the guys getting ready had woken me up about 15 minutes before, but I still stayed in my bunk. I didn't feel like leaving the warmth of my bed, especially since it was still dark and chilly out before the sun came up. I covered my head with the blankets and put off getting up as long as I could.

I heard the bunk room door swing open and recognized Spot's voice as he spoke with someone else. I silently counted down the seconds in my head. _3...2...1._

"Chaos!" Spot yelled from across the room. "What're you still doin' in bed?!" Instead of responding, I simply rolled over on my bunk, making the blankets covering me shift around slightly. Then I was still again.

Spot growled in aggravation. "I'm warnin' ya, Chaos..." He said softly. When he used that calm tone of voice, it scared me more than when he yelled. Still, I didn't budge.

There was the sound of an object whizzing through the air, and it struck me right above my shoulder blade. Even through my clothing and the layers of blankets, it stung like hell. "Ow!" I yelped, sitting up and throwing the blankets off.

I glared across the bunk room at Spot, who was holding up his slingshot with a wide smirk on his face. "You gonna git up, or should I use ya for target practice again?" He said. For some stupid reason, I had thought he might actually treat me decently after we had somewhat gotten along on the roof the night before. Man, was I wrong.

I swung my legs over the side of the mattress and stood up, grumbling angrily to myself. As I got to my feet, Spot's smirk grew even wider and he tucked his slingshot into his back pocket. "Pffft... Why stop at da title of King of Brooklyn? Why not jus' go straight to "biggest show off in New Yawk"?!" I yelled.

That was when I noticed that there was a boy standing next to Spot. Although he was dressed like a newsie, I had never seen him in the Brooklyn lodging house before. He was tall and had a sort of lanky posture, the way he stood with his hands in his pockets. He stared at me through the strands of dark hair that hung in his eyes.

"See dat goil over dere? Da one I can't stand?" Spot said, pointing at me. My eyes narrowed even more at him. The boy looked over and nodded slowly. "You get da overwhelmin' pleasure of sleepin' in da bunk above her." Spot said sarcastically. "It's da only bunk we'se got right now."

"A'right... dat's fine." He replied, walking over. The boy took off the bag he was carrying on his back and reached up to put it on the top bunk. I watched him carefully out of the corner of my eye as I dug through the drawer for a clean shirt.

"He always dat bossy?" The boy asked, keeping his voice so that only I could hear it. A slight hint of an Irish accent could be heard in his tone, but years of living in America had withered it down, replacing it with a New York accent. I shrugged, looking up to meet his gaze. "Only when he's awake." I replied.

A smile spread across his face as he looked at me. He suddenly stuck his hand out to shake mine. "Da names Cricket." He told me. I cautiously accepted his handshake. "Chaos." I said in response.

Cricket raised my hand up to his mouth and his lips quickly brushed across it. "So I'se hoid." He said, grinning even wider. I rolled my eyes and pulled my hand back, but I couldn't help the slight smile that crept across my lips.

"You gonna start actin' like a showoff now, too?" I asked, turning away to grab my hairbrush off the nightstand. "Showoff? Who's bein' a showoff? I jus' happen to think dat ladies should be treated wit respect..." Cricket replied, shrugging and shoving his hands into his pockets.

I smirked and nodded slowly. "Ah, I see... So you'se jus' a suck-up." I retorted, walking past him towards the wash room.

.-:-.-:-.

Pulling my cap over my head, I opened the front door to the Brooklyn Lodging House. The fresh sea breeze blew from the river, bringing a salty smell with it.

I was the first to leave the lodging house, in order to narrowly escape the shaving-cream fight that had started in the washroom. While shaving, Nudge accidentally flicked some shaving cream onto Spit-Ball. And, well... it escalated from there.

I shoved my hands deep into my pockets, trying to avoid the early-morning chill in the air. Just as I passed the building neighboring the lodging house, I heard my name being called from behind me.

"Chaos!!" I sighed and stopped in my tracks, but I didn't turn around. I didn't need to. The annoyed tone of voice he always used to say my name was unmistakable. "What!?" I called impatiently over my shoulder. "C'mere!" he yelled.

I groaned and turned around, walking back to the lodging house. Spot was waiting at the bottom of the stairs with his arms crossed. "What'd I do to piss you off _now_?" I asked. "Jeez, Conlon. It's 6 AM. Would ya gimme a break?"

"Ya didn't do nuttin' to piss me off... Surprisingly." Spot added, scratching his head. "I need ya to show da new kid 'round since he don't know his way in Brooklyn."

"You kiddin'? I barely know my way 'round Brooklyn meself. It's only been three days! 'nd he ain't jus' da new kid. He's got a name, ya know, 'nd it happens to be Cricket."

Spot glared at me, his eyes filling with frustration. "Ya done?" He asked. I raised an eyebrow at him and nodded slowly. "Yes." I said. "Good. Now show da new kid 'round Brooklyn." There was just no winning with Spot. I rolled my eyes and leaned against the lodging house wall, waiting for Cricket to come out.

As Spot passed me on the sidewalk, a thought crossed my mind. "Hey! Wait up a sec." I said. He turned and gave me a look as if I was wasting his time. "Yeah?"

"You'se lettin' me sell witout you." I pointed out. Spot shrugged and shook his head. "So?" He asked. "So, two days ago you wouldn't let me outta yer sight unless I was wit Ghost. Now you'se lettin' me walk 'round Brooklyn by meself? Why da sudden loosenin' of da leash?" I replied. A smirk formed on his lips. "Foist off, you ain't alone. Yer wit da new ki-"

"Cricket." I corrected. Spot rolled his eyes. "Cricket. 'nd second, I'se been thinkin'... Jackie-Boy jus' said I had to keep an eye on ya. Neva said I had to torture meself wit yer presence twenty four-seven."

I narrowed my eyes at him. He returned my glower with an even bigger smirk as he began walking again.

.-:-.-:-.

When I heard the lodging house door creak open, I looked up from the pebble that I had been kicking against the curb. Cricket smiled at me as he jumped the few stairs. "Heya Chaos... What ya still stickin' 'round for? I thought ya left a while ago..." He said.

"I did leave a while ago, but it seems I'se been assigned as ya tour guide for the day." I replied, going over to meet him at the bottom of the steps. "Aw, don't worry 'bout it, Chaos. I don't wanna be a pain or nuttin'. I'll be fine on me own." Cricket told me. "And if Spot asks, I'll cover for ya 'nd tell him I was wit ya all day. He's da one who gave ya dis task, I'm guessin'?"

I smiled and nodded. "It ain't a problem, though. Believe me, ya won't be a pain. _Nuttin's _a pain compared to da crap Conlon's been givin' me since I got heah." I said. "Hold still a sec..." I added, reaching up to Cricket's face. A smear of shaving cream was left on his lower jaw line. I quickly rubbed it off and wiped my hand on my pants.

Cricket laughed. "Guess I missed some... Jeez, ya should see dat washroom. It looks like a snowstorm broke out inside. Shaving cream _everywhere_." He told me as we started to walk in the direction of the Brooklyn distribution center.

"We was covered from head to toe. You 'nd Spot were da only ones who were smart enough to get outta dere before da fight got too bad." Cricket said.

I shrugged. "Didn't really matter if Spot got outta dere or not. Dey'se so afraid of him, dey wouldn't even dare splatter him wit a speck of shavin' cream." I pointed out. Cricket nodded in agreement. "Come to think of it, Chaos... You'se da only one 'round heah who don't seem to be afraid of him."

"Hah! Why should I be? He ain't nuttin' but a pipsqueak wit a cane..." I replied matter-of-factly. A grin spread across Cricket's face as he looked over and down at me. "Hate to burst yer bubble, but I'se pretty sure Spot's taller den you."

"So?! Everyone's taller den me... It ain't much of an accomplishment." I sneered. Cricket rolled his eyes and followed me to the end of the distribution line.

.-:-.-:-.

So new there's a new Brooklyn newsie... He seems a little shady to me, guys... What do you think? hmm...

Thanks for reading, everyone. Please review if you can. I love reading your comments and stuff.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I don't claim ownership over any of the original characters from "Newsies." Chaos, Cricket, and the Brooklyn newsies (Minus Spot Conlon) are the only ones that belong to me. Everyone else is property of Disney and some other random people.

Hi guys. Before we start, I've got something I wanna share with all of you: Okay. So I write on Microsoft word, right? And the little squiggly red lines underneath misspelled words just annoys me sometimes. I guess it's just distracting. Anyway, when I write I usually add the misspelled words to the computer dictionary so they don't come up as wrong anymore. I was going through the dictionary, and it turns out that I have 138 added "newsie" words, such as "woik" and "aks" and "anythin'" and "conlon". Haha. What a loser.

And with that, here we go.

.-:-.-:-.

It didn't take long to get Cricket settled. He was previously a newsie, so he knew the ins and outs of selling. According to what he told me, he had sold papes in Midtown before he came to Brooklyn.

As it got closer to late afternoon, the crowds on the streets seemed to thin out and it was harder to find customers. When Cricket and I both got down to our last twenty papers, we decided it was best if we split up. The two of us agreed on meeting at the docks once we were done.

The docks were Brooklyn's territory and everyone knew it, although I didn't understand how someone could have ownership over a bunch of water. Still, that's where the Brooklynites spent their free time. If they finished selling early, they would head there for a swim before it got dark.

I could hear the splashing and voices of the newsies before I could see them. Hands in my pockets, I walked the length of the pier as I searched the water for Cricket. I couldn't seem to find him in the mass of boys that were swimming.

I turned around when I heard the sound of feet hitting the wooden planks. Spot had jumped off his throne at the top of the crates and landed behind me. "What are ya doin' heah." He asked coldly. "I thought I told ya to stick around da new kid."

"What, no greetin'? I would appreciate a 'Hello Chaos, how are you" from time to time." I replied, ignoring his statement and grinning at the way his eyes started to blaze with annoyance. Spot tightened his jaw. Then he closed the distance between us, lightly but threateningly clasping his fist around my collar.

"How many times do I gotta tell ya... You betta start watchin' da way you talk to me, Chaos. Dis is my territory, member?" He growled, lowering his voice barely to a whisper. His face was only a few inches away from mine once again and my heart got caught in my throat as my smirk faded away.

I gulped it down and quickly regained my confidence. "Whats a'matter? Afraid to let yer newsies see a goil standin' up to da fearless leader of Brooklyn?" I retorted. Neither of us muttered another word, but both of us refused to back down from the glare.

After a few seconds, Spot released his grip on my collar and took a step back, but he continued to burn into my eyes with his. "You got a death wish?" He hissed.

As I opened my mouth to reply, I heard quick footsteps pounding on the wooden dock. I looked to the side and saw Cricket running at me full speed with a gleam in his eye and a slight grin on his face. Before I could move out of the way, his arm hooked around my waist and he hurdled into the water, pulling me with him.

The murky water surrounded me and made a rushing noise when it filled my ears. I kicked to the surface again and spit out a mouthful of salty water. Cricket had already resurfaced and was treading water next to me, still beaming.

"What do ya think yer doin'!?" I yelled, frantically wiping the loose strands of wet hair out of my face. "Savin' ya." He said calmly. "Ya said it yourself dat ya can't stand Conlon, so I figured I'd jus' shorten da conversation a bit." Cricket stated.

I glanced up at the dock to see Spot looking at us with a puzzled expression on his face. He leaned most of his weight on the top of his cane and raised his eyebrow. Spot couldn't hear mine and Cricket's conversation because of the splashing and yelling of the other oblivious boys around us.

I looked back at Cricket as a smile spread across my face. "As helpful as it was, you'se still gonna pay for dat." I muttered, lunging at him and pushing his head under the water. As Cricket thrashed around and laughed like a lunatic, I stole one more glance at Spot. He rolled his eyes and went back to his throne overlooking the river.

.-:-.-:-.

The next few days passed steadily until I had been staying in Brooklyn an entire week. Cricket and I had been selling together and were quickly becoming good friends. He had something to his personality that the other Brooklyn newsies didn't have. He had a carefree spirit that made it easy to spend time with him.

While we sold together, we would wander around the streets and talk about everything and anything.

The only thing Cricket wouldn't talk about, though, was his previous life in Midtown. Every time I brought it up, Cricket would shrug it off and tell me it was 'exactly like here.' He never once mentioned any of his friends or where he lived before he came to Brooklyn.

.-:-.-:-.

I closed the door behind me and walked briskly down the sidewalk, smiling triumphantly to myself. I had managed to get up 20 minutes before the rest of the boys and had left before any of them even woke up. That way, I could save myself from yet another rude awakening from Spot Conlon and also from some stress.

Or so I thought, anyway. I heard the door swing open and someone ran after me, shouting my name. I sighed and turned around to see Spot, just pulling his suspenders over his shoulders. "Jeez... Where's da fire?" he asked sarcastically, catching up to me.

I rolled my eyes and turned my back to him, continuing to walk. "Forgive me if I wanna get outta dere so I don't have to deal wit yer crap so early in da mornin'." I replied.

"Oh, believe me. I don't mind if ya leave early, Chaos... Actually, I'd radder it." He said coldly, hurrying to fall in step with me. "But yer goin' da wrong way." Spot added.

I raised my eyebrow and glanced sideways at him, but continued walking. "What're ya talkin' about? Dis is how ya get to da distribution desk." I replied. Spot shrugged. "Yeah, dat's right. But we ain't goin' to da distribution desk."

"Oh yeah? And where might we be goin'?" I asked mockingly. "Out to breakfast." Spot answered casually. I slowed to a stop and stared at him. "Woah...what?"

Spot sighed. "We. Are. Goin'. Out. To. Breakfast." He said, impatiently stressing every word. "M-me and you?" I stuttered.

"Yeah." He smirked. "Don't get yer hopes up, Chaos. It ain't _jus'_ me 'nd you. It's da rest of me boys 'nd Jack. Dat's why we'se goin' in da foist place. He wants to talk to me 'bout you goin' back to Manhattan."

"Fine. And I wasn't gettin' me hopes up, Conlon. I think I'd rather stick my face into a cup of scoldin' hot coffee den have to sit dere and drink it in your company." I shot back at him.

.-:-.-:-.

Thanks for reading, and huge thanks to the people who have been reviewing.

Sorry this one was sorta short. I'll have another out way soon.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the Disney movie "Newsies." The only characters I claim ownership over are Chaos, Cricket, and the Brooklyn Newsies that were not from the movie.

Hiya, everyone :)

So at my school we've got this crazy thing called "Spirit Week". Every day has a different theme, and tomorrow is career day-- Which means, pretty much dress up like a doctor or baseball player or something like that. Annndd being the dork that I am, I'm going as a newsie. Right down to the suspenders. I wonder if I'll have any friends left when I get home from school tomorrow.

On that note, this chapter is a little longer than the last couple ones I've posted. Not much longer, but hey, at least I tried :) Enjoy.

.-:-.-:-.

I kept a couple paces behind Spot as he walked quickly down the blocks. I struggled to keep up with his fast strides. "Hey, would ya slow down!?" I yelled. Without slowing his pace, Spot looked over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow at me. Then a smirk spread across his face and he doubled his speed.

I groaned and abandoned the idea of walking, starting to jog to catch up with him. "You, Spot Conlon, are a huge pain in my ass." I called. He didn't answer me.

After walking about another block, he stopped short and turned around. Just as I caught up with him, he grabbed my wrist and sharply pulled me through a door of a building. It had a sign above the door, written in cursive, which read "Damico's Diner."

I stumbled over my feet as he continued to drag me to the back of the small diner. With me in tow, Spot weaved in and out of the tables of newsies that had already arrived. The two of us finally reached a small booth at the very back.

Someone was already sitting there with their head pointed down, reading the menu. All I could see was the dark-colored cowboy hat that shaded his face from view. _Jack_. I assumed.

"Sorry we'se late, Jackie Boy." Spot shoved me forcefully into the seat across from Jack. "Dis one _insisted_ on gettin' her papes before we came heah." Spot sat down next to me, enclosing me in the booth.

I tugged my arm away from Spot's grip and placed my papers on the table, off to the side. "I see a week's passed and you'se still gotta tug her 'round to get her to listen to ya." Jack commented.

"Shut it." I muttered. He put up his hands in defense. "'nd I can see she's still a ray of sunshine." Jack added sarcastically. The three of us looked up when the waiter came over, handing me and Spot menus.

I took this opportunity to take in the details of the diner. It was narrow, but long. The front entrance only had enough space for a door and a rectangular window since it was squished between two other stores on either side. It looked even smaller with all the Brooklyn newsies piled inside, buzzing with chatter at their tables.

"Anyway, I got some good news for da two of ya." Jack stated, bringing my attention back. "From what I'se gathered, da police have jus' about forgotten 'bout da fight by now. I'm guessin, Chaos, dey's stopped lookin' for ya. So I suppose ya can come back to Manhattan."

"Really?" I asked, looking over at Jack. I should have been happy to leave. No more horrible early wake-up calls, or selling all day until dusk, or having to bunk with a bunch of guys, and especially--no more having to deal with "The fearless King of Brooklyn". Still, something made my heart sink when Jack nodded, indicating that I could go back.

"What a shame, Chaos. I dunno what you'se gonna do wit yourself, missin' me so bad." Spot said, shooting me his usual smirk. But something about his eyes wasn't usual. They had no triumphant gleam in them.

"In yer dreams, Conlon. I ain't gonna miss you any more den you'se gonna miss me." I replied, sneering at him. "Well, I guess you ain't gonna miss me, den, because I coitainly ain't gonna miss you." Spot said. "I guess not then!" I rolled my eyes. "Fine!" Spot turned his shoulder to me and picked up a menu, attempting to ignore me.

Jack sighed and shook his head, dropping his chin into his hand. "Da two of you fight like little kids." He pointed out.

I picked up a menu, too, and tried to scan through the drinks, but I couldn't concentrate. I could feel Jack's gaze on me before he shifted over to Spot. He returned his gaze to me again, then to Spot. Me, Spot. "Now dat I think about it, guys..."

I looked up and saw a gleam in Jack's eye and a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. He had an idea. "It's _only _been a week since Chaos has been heah, right?" Jack asked. "Yeah, so?" Spot responded, shrugging.

"So who knows? A week ain't a very long time... Maybe everythin' 'bout da fight ain't forgotten yet. I think we should play it safe, keep her heah a few more days."

My eyes went wide. "You gotta be kiddin' me, Jack." I muttered. He shrugged, but didn't say anything else. I didn't know what to say, either. _I __**do**__ want to get out of here... Don't I?_ I asked myself

I heard Spot take a deep breath. "Look, as much as it completely 'nd utterly _pains_ me to say dis... Maybe Jackie-Boy's right." Spot said slowly. My jaw dropped open as I stared at him. "Ya go back now, ya could end up in da refuge... Maybe we betta' give it a couple more days."

"Yeah yeah, whatever ya say, Conlon." I muttered mockingly, waving his opinion away as I thought about whether I wanted to stay or not. "Yeah! It is whatever I say!" he shot back.

"Woah! Da two of ya, cut it out!" Jack said, breaking it up before the argument escalated. "Chaos... You gonna stay or what? It's yer choice, but I suggest Brooklyn's da best option for ya right now..." He advised, trying to read my facial expression. I shrugged, attempting not to seem too eager.

"I... I guess a couple more days can't hoit." I sighed. Instantly, the tension around the table suddenly disappeared. I looked through the menu, actually able to comprehend what it said this time.

A few minutes passed and the three of us slipped into a conversation. While Spot was in mid sentence, describing his role in the 1899 Newsboys' Strike in vivid detail, two girls walked through the door. Being the only empty table, they slid into a booth next to us. Their whispering and giggling caught Spot's attention as they stole glances at him.

Spot smirked and casually rested his elbows on the back of the seat. "'mornin', ladies." He said, tipping his hat towards them. This caused them to giggle even more. I rolled my eyes at their obnoxiousness. _Jeez... Why does every single girl gotta fall over him like he's something great?_

_Because he is._ My mind answered for me. I quickly shoved the thought away, standing up and grabbing my papes. "Move." I instructed to Spot so I could get out of the booth seat. "Oh? Where ya goin'?" He asked.

"I don't wanna be heah any more den you want me to be heah. I'se gonna go over to Cricket's table." I said. Spot didn't budge. He just looked up at me as if to say "make me." He grinned even wider at my aggravation. "Move!" I yelled, shoving him right off the bench. He caught his footing right before he fell to the floor.

"Watch it, Chaos..." Spot growled. I pushed passed him, purposely knocking into his shoulder with mine on the way. I walked across the diner and plopped myself down next to Cricket, who was at a table with Dynamite and Ghost. "Hey Chaos... What's a'matter?" Cricket asked, making me realize that I was still carrying around a scowl on my face. He casually slipped his arm around my shoulders.

"Nuttin'... Conlon jus' ticks me off, is all." I mumbled. "Ah, whadder ya gonna do... He ticks us all off sometimes. But what can I say, da guy's a born leader." Dynamite commented.

"So ya order yet?" Ghost asked me, handing me a menu from across the table. I shook my head and put my hand up, indicating that I didn't want it. "No thanks... I ain't very hungry. Think I'm jus' gonna go sell. Maybe I'll head back to da lodgin' house as soon as I'se done 'nd catch some more sleep." I replied, pushing the chair back and getting to my feet again.

.-:-.-:-.

I guess I figured the "Thanks for reviewing you guys are cool" comments aren't going to cut it for much longer. So I decided I'm gonna reply to the most recent reviews you guys have sent, just to prove how much I appreciate it :D

**Pippa Kelly:** Thanks so much for reviewing almost every chapter. You've got no idea how helpful it is. I'm glad you like the story so far, and I'm _really_ glad that you've stuck with reading them for so long... If I'm not mistaken, I think you were one of the firsts to comment on one of the first stories I put up here. Anyway, the whole "Love or hate, liking hating" thing is what I'm aiming for :)

**ktkakes:** You're another one of the people who've been reading since the beginning. I'm happy you like Chaos, because I know a lot of readers kind of tend to hate the girl characters haha. Your reviews are so much fun to read, you seem like one of those people who's always happy, what with all the "yays" and stuff... Kind of a "blink" or "race" figure, to put it in newsie terms.

**peculiarjuliar: **Yet ANOTHER one who has been reading early on. Thanks so much for reviewing all the time. Don't worry, the whole "missed a chapter" thing, I do that all the time too :) And as for the "Back to reality, folks"-- Who wants to live in reality!? There's no newsies in reality! Hmm... Is there a line between 'obsessed' and 'too obsessed?' Because I think I crossed that line long ago...

**jess**: Thanks for reviewing, and I'm happy that you like it. Don't worry-- It's getting closer to the end, so you'll see what happens.

**st.elmo-lover:** I'm glad you got the time to read it and you like it. I'll work on making the chapters a little longer if I can... Especially since there's a four day weekend coming up for me, I'll be writing the whole time. :D

**Sirenn**: Thanks for reviewing! Yeah, I've got this idea in my head that dialogue is one of the most important things... Like ever seen the movie "Clerks?" It's one of my favorite movies, and if you don't catch the dialogue it's not funny, but if you do it's genius. Sorry--- Rambling a bit, haha. Anyway, thanks.

**Rambles**: The whole "like a guy but can't stand him," yeah, it's not just you lol. I've been in the situation loads of times, and it's just plain frustrating. I was trying to shy away from the 'girl and guy get in one simple fight and then they fall in love' scenario, because that's never how it happens in real life. Anyways, I'm glad you like it.

**Trignifty**: Thank you very much :) I'm currently working on the showing two sides of Spot, and I wasn't sure how well it was coming across so thanks for the review. Helped so much.

**Facetiouslymischievious**: Choir geek, band geek, same difference. I guess we'll just go under the category of 'Music Geeks' haha. Anyway, thanks for reading and reviewing all the time. And love your sign off thingy, "Obsessed and Proud" lol.

**Cutemy**: Thanks for the review! I'm happy that you like it and I'll try to update as often as possible.

**NarniaRulz:** Dimensions to characters is another thing I'm trying to work on... I can't stand when you read a fanfic and the characters are just about as dry and flat as a saltine cracker, you know? Woah, bit of a strange simile there. Anyway, your reviews honestly help a lot, because I wasn't sure if I was doing alright with that or not :) thanks.

Everyone else-- Thanks for reading, and I'll have a new one out soon!


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own, nor claim ownership over, any of the original characters from the Disney movie "Newsies."

Alright. So career day today-- Dressed as a newsie. I took a tally of how many people asked "What are you supposed to be" (23) and I never once got tired of saying "I'm a newsie!!", of course with a huge, somewhat creepy, grin on my face. However, I did get tired of people trying to steal my hat :(

And here we go.

.-:-.-:-.

I worked my way towards the lodging house, starting at the diner. I stopped to sell every time there was a passing crowd. "Extry, extry! Farmer in Virginia claims to have seen aliens!" In reality, the article was about how the farmer's dog, Alien, broke the record for 'biggest litter of puppies' when it gave birth to twenty three at once. "Thank ya, Miss." I said, handing a woman a newspaper in return for a penny. By the time I was a few blocks away, I only had four or five papes left and it was almost dark.

As I passed one of the shaded alleyways, I heard the rustling of garbage bags. I backed up again, half expecting to see a poor street-rat unconscious against the crates.

When I glanced into the alley, a strong fist clasped around my collar and dragged me in. I was thrown up against a brick wall and held there before I could contemplate what was happening. "Where is he!?" A voice boomed.

"W-who?" I gasped, choked by the pull of the fabric around my neck. I frantically tried to reach the ground, but the tips of my toes barely touched. He pushed me more forcefully into the wall again. "You know who!" he yelled.

His yellowish-green eyes glared at me when I didn't respond. I tried to punch him or kick him, anything to make him drop me. But my weak attempts had no effect on him. I was helpless. "Where is he!? Where's Logan?!"

"I-I don't know a Logan..." My answer earned me a punch to the jaw. "Don't lie to me, goil! You'se been wit him every day! I saw ya!" He raised his fist again. I desperately shook my head. "You've got da wrong person! I don't know anyone by dat name, honest—" Another blow to the face. I could already feel the bruise forming on my cheek.

"I'm gonna ask ya... one more time." His threat came from under his ragged breathing. Still holding me by the neck with one hand, the other hand disappeared behind his back. I heard the sound of metal snapping into place and he pulled out a knife.

"P-please, lemme go... I don't know who yer lookin' for, a'right? Lemme go!" He brought the blade up to my neck, and I raised my chin as high as possible to avoid coming in contact with it. "I don't like it when people play dumb, goil... It don't make my job very easy." He whispered.

I shut my eyes and waited for the cold tip of the knife to touch my chin, but it never did. I heard a hollow _clunk_ sound and cautiously opened one of my eyes.

The stranger in front of me let his head droop forward and then jerked it upright again. The grip of his hand loosened on me and I dropped to my feet. He went cross-eyed for a split second, and then his figure crumbled from under him. He collapsed onto the cobblestone, revealing Spot Conlon standing behind him.

Spot was holding his cane with both hands, ready to hit him over the head again with it if the guy tried to get up. When Spot was sure the body was still, he glanced up at me. The reflection of a nearby streetlamp caught in his incredible eyes and made him look more dangerous than I'd ever seen him before.

I could feel myself trembling from fear. I wouldn't call myself a great fighter, but I had never been that powerless in a situation before. If Spot didn't show up, God knows what would have happened...

"S-Sp..." I tried to say his name, but I couldn't make any sound come from my lips.

"Chaos!" Cricket ran towards me from the opening of the alleyway and engulfed me in a hug. "God, what happened? Are ya alright?!"

I nodded into his shoulder as he pulled me closer in his arms. Cricket lightly forced me to look up by putting his hand under my chin. "Chaos, look at me... Ya alright?" He asked. I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded more definitely this time. "Yeah, thanks to..." I turned my head to look for Spot, but he had slipped off into the shadows.

.-:-.-:-.

I wiped my forehead on my sleeve. The sun was brutal, but dark clouds seemed to be rolling their way into Brooklyn, providing some relief. I was standing in the middle of the sidewalk, absentmindedly staring at a crack in the cobblestone.

Cricket tapped me on the shoulder and I nearly jumped out of my skin. "Woah... Someone's a bit jumpy today..." He commented. His eyes flickered from the bruise on my face the stack of papers under my arm.

He smiled and held out his hand. "Lemme help... Ya seem to be runnin' a bit behind today." Cricket said. "Ah, you'se got yer own papes to worry 'bout. But thanks." I replied.

"I'se already finished." Cricket showed me his empty bag. "It's no problem." He told me, taking half the papers. I smiled appreciatively at him.

"Uh... Hey, did ya happen to see Conlon today by any chance?" I asked in between yelling out articles. "Extra! Train crash on outskirts of da city! Nah, I didn't... Think he went to Manhattan for somethin'. Why?" Cricket asked, handing out papers to a small group that had formed around us. "Jus' wanna talk to him, I guess."

Cricket paused mid-headline and lowered the newspaper. "Lemme get dis straight... You -Chaos- willingly want to talk to Spot Conlon?" I shrugged. "I didn't really thank him for what he did last night."

He nodded, but looked over at me with confusion. "What exactly _did_ happen last night?" Cricket asked. I tilted my head in the direction of the customers, indicating that I didn't want to talk about it around the crowd. For all we knew, a friend of the guy could have been searching the city for the person who knocked his buddy unconscious with a cane. Cricket nodded again, immediately understanding me. "A'right... We'll talk 'bout it when we'se done, okay?"

.-:-.-:-.

Yeah, sorta short. But I don't have school tomorrow, so you know what that means? Yep. Caffeine, my computer, and a whole night's worth of writing.

**st.elmo-lover**: Haha, thanks :) Yeah, I figured it would be only fair to have the brilliant strike leader see through Chaos's and Spot's "hate" for each other. As for Cricket and Chaos getting together, I guess we'll just have to see. ::Makes innocent face like she's got no clue what's going to happen::

**facetiouslymichievious:** Thanks for the review! It's kinda difficult to update every day, but here's what I do: Before I post a chapter, I make sure that I have a little of the next one written already. Kind of like staying ahead of the game, you know? That way, even if I don't get a chance to write I still have something to post. And on top of that, I've got no life and spend all my time writing besides when I'm in school, with my friends, or sleeping, haha. (and the OaP thing sounds good, good luck with it:D)

**Pippa Kelly:** I'm soo happy that you think they're all different... I'm always sorta paranoid that they'll all come out somewhat the same, you know? There's only so much you can do with a bunch of hot guys living in a lodging house in the 1900's... Anyway, I did have fun dressing like a newsie, and yeah... I secretly wish I was a real one. Woops, guess it's not a secret anymore.

**Sirenn: **Aw, thanks :) I'm happy that you like it... I was sort of afraid that I'm taking too long to put Chaos and Spot together... Sort of like it's getting a bit boring just reading about them going back and forth with each other. Anyway, thanks for the review!

**NarniaRulz:** Absolutely no problem. I appreciate any reviews I can get lol. Yeah, Spot and Chaos both have their moments where one's on top and the other sort of lost the fight. Thanks again :)

Everyone else-- Thanks for reading.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I don't claim ownership over any of the characters from the Disney movie "Newsies." The only characters I own are Chaos, Cricket, and the Brooklyn Newsies EXCEPT for Spot Conlon.

Hiya everyone. So good news: I got a whole lot of writing done last night (caffeine can work miracles) so that means the next few chapters, including this one, should be long and out fairly quickly. Wooo :D

I was wondering... Do you guys want me to do a "recap" thingy at the beginning of each chapter? Maybe put a paragraph in italics of the last chapter so you know where you left off? I know I'm one of those people who always forgets the last thing that happened, and then I gotta go back to the previous chapter. So give me your views on that one and here we go.

.-:-.-:-.

With Cricket's help, I was able to get rid of the rest of my papers within half an hour. After we were finished selling, we wandered around for some time looking for desolate place to talk. We ended up walking towards the Brooklyn Bridge.

"So what happened last night, Chaos?" Cricket asked softly, slipping his hand around mine as we walked. I shrugged. "Dis half-crazed guy showed up, thinkin' I knew where some person was. I told him I didn't know da name, 'nd he jus' pulled a knife on me."

"And how'd he end up on da ground?" Cricket asked. "Apparently Conlon's cane ain't jus' for show." I replied. "Woah... No wonder you'se been a little sidetracked since den..."

"Yeah... But da creepy thing is, dat guy was _convinced _I knew who he was lookin' for. Jus' kept sayin' I was lyin' to him."

"What was da name?" He asked. I bit my lip, trying to think of it. "Hmm... Something with an L. Logan, I think." I thought I saw a hint of panic in Cricket's eyes, but it was gone in an instant. Still, I stopped and turned towards him. "You okay?" I asked skeptically.

He nodded. "Yeah... Jus' hate to think of what might have happened if dat guy had three more seconds before Spot showed up." Cricket slowly brought his hand up to my face, stroking my cheek lightly with his thumb. "Chaos, ya mean a lot to me."

An idea tugged at my mind, telling me that Cricket was hiding something, trying to cover it up... I opened my mouth to ask a question, but it was forgotten when Cricket quickly leaned down and pressed his lips against mine. Cautiously, I put my hands on his shoulders as he deepened the kiss. But my heart sunk, like I was waiting to feel something that never happened.

Cricket pulled away for a split second so he could wrap his other arm around my waist. When he leaned in to kiss me again, I heard the _smack_ of something hitting his shoulder. Cricket jumped back in pain and I whirled around to see Spot holding his slingshot up. He looked just as surprised as Cricket, although he had been the one who shot the marble.

"What da hell, Conlon?!" I yelled. Spot was completely frozen, his mouth slightly open. I groaned in annoyance and turned back to Cricket. "Are you a'right?" I asked softly. He nodded, moving the neckline over on his shirt to reveal a bruise that was starting to form.

I sighed and brought my gaze to his eyes. "Go back to da lodgin' house 'nd ice dat, a'right? I gotta have a lil talk wit Spot." I said. Cricket hesitated for a second before finally agreeing. I watched him disappear around a corner before I turned to face the bridge. Spot was standing at the mouth of it, no doubt coming back from Manhattan.

"Do you enjoy destroyin' everything dat makes me happy? Huh!? Is dat how ya get yer kicks!?" I yelled, taking a few more steps towards him. For once, Spot was silent. He let his gaze drop to the ground. "Answer me!" I demanded.

"I... I didn't mean to do dat." He mumbled slowly. I snorted at his answer. "Oh, so da marble jus' _slipped_, I see. I'se hoid better excuses from seven year olds, Conlon!" I was practically fuming. Where did he get the nerve to think he could do something like that? Sure, he was convinced he was the King of Brooklyn. But that didn't mean he got to go around budding into other peoples' love lives like cupid with a slingshot.

"No, I mean... Somethin' jus'..." Spot paused and fiddled with the key around his neck as his voice faded out. "Somethin' jus' what!?" I yelled. He sighed and looked up at me, glaring me directly in the eye in this time. "Nevermind." His voice went sour again. "I don't gotta explain nuttin' to _you._" He said the last word as if it poisoned his mouth.

Spot turned on his heel and angrily walked across the bridge again, his fists clenched at his side.

"Ugh! Dis is it, Conlon! I'd rather be in da Manhattan refuge den heah wit you!" I yelled after him. "I don't need you, or yer help, or dat lodgin' house, or any of dis crap!" He was halfway across the bridge and I doubted if he could even hear me, but I continued away.

"I could go to Queens, or Harlem, or... or anywhere I want!" I dropped to my knees and picked up a rock, hurling it mercilessly at the bridge. The sound echoed as it bounced off. "Jus' as long as I'm away from him." I muttered.

.-:-.-:-.

By the time I got back to the Brooklyn Lodging house to collect my things, it was way past late afternoon and the sun had set.

I found out from Ghost, who was the only one in the bunk room when I got there, that Cricket had taken off only about 30 minutes before. He rushed to grab his belongings and left without much of an explanation as to why. I was still too pissed at Spot to give it much thought, though.

I said goodbye to Ghost, telling him that I would come to see him soon--Most likely when Spot _wasn't _around. After all, Ghost had been one of my closest friends in Brooklyn.

With my small pile of extra clothes and possessions sitting next to me, I let my legs swing idly over the water. My arms were crossed over my lap and I let my gaze blur out where the water met the gloomy sky.

The fog was so thick over the water that I could barely see the surface. Once in a while, the clouds would break just enough to get a glimpse of the hazy moon, but the light would be gone again in seconds as more clouds rolled by.

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched the old sailboat bob up and down in the water. The same sailboat that Spot had brought me to after I cut my leg up on the rocks. As the fog collected around the base of the forgotten boat, it looked almost haunted.

Despite the eerie feel around me that was a combination of the fog and the darkness, all of it was beautiful. I sat on the dock and picked up pebble after pebble, tossing them into the water. The ripples shattered the images of the mist.

"Looks like we actually have somethin' in common." The voice made me jump since I had thought I was alone. Still, I didn't have to turn around to tell who it was. "You 'nd me? We could neva' have anythin' in common." I shot back coldly.

"Oh yeah? Besides our stubbornness, I think we do." I heard Spot's footsteps on the wooden planks as he came over and sat beside me, letting his legs hang over the water, also. "Your favorite place in da woild is my favorite place in da woild." He answered.

"And why do ya assume dat?" I challenged. He shrugged as he turned his head towards me to look me in the eye. "I can jus' tell. By da way ya look out over dese waters da same way I do. Couldn't leave witout seein' it one more time, could ya?" Spot asked.

I ignored his question, changing the subject and looking away. "I talked to Ghost when I went back to get me stuff... Said Cricket jus' took off. I can't believe you'd be dat low, Conlon." I said. Spot tilted his head slightly to the side and raised an eyebrow.

"I know ya can't stand to see me happy, but did ya have to kick da guy out!?" I questioned. "What are ya talkin' about?" Spot asked. Judging by his voice, it was obvious that he was confused. "I'm talkin' bout Cricket!" I explained impatiently.

Curiosity invaded his eyes. "Ya honestly think I'd do somethin' like dat? Kick him out?" he asked slowly.

"Maybe." I replied coldly, looking away and beginning to toss pebbles into the water again. Spot took a deep breath and let it out, sounding more like a heavy sigh than an exhale. "Chaos... Don't- Don't leave." He said.

I sighed. "Save it, Spot. Dere's no way I'm stayin' heah." I answered, picking up my things and getting to my feet. He stood up, too. "Why not?"

I started to walk down the pier, absolutely no clue where I was planning on going. "Because I'm sick 'nd tired of dis. Face it, Conlon. You don't care 'bout no one but yerself." I told him over my shoulder. "Dat ain't true!" Spot said quickly, keeping a few steps behind me. "You're wrong, 'cause I do."

I stopped and turned around to face him, rolling my eyes. He stopped walking also. "Oh yeah? Who!?" I demanded. Spot never faltered once as he stared at me with his icy-blue eyes. "You."

I was stunned for a second and all thoughts froze until I recovered. _He's playing mind games with you._ My brain told me. "You're a liar and a pain in my ass, Spot Conlon." I shot back at him, turning away again. I took quick strides to get away from him, but he ran in front of me and blocked my path.

I avoided his blazing eyes at all costs as he threateningly grabbed the collar of my shirt. "Don't you _dare_ call me a liar, Chaos. I may be a jerk, maybe even a little ruthless... But I am not a liar. I _care_ 'bout you, 'nd a lot more den you think!" He hissed.

I opened my mouth to reply, but I had too many thoughts running through my head to back up my words. His face was, once again, inches from my own. I suddenly began to feel extremely dizzy. The shock wouldn't leave my body and neither would the feeling of lightheadedness.

My legs started to feel weak underneath the weight of my body, and I didn't know if I could support myself any longer. "I... Oh dear." I mumbled, collapsing forward and loosing all consciousness.

.-:-.-:-.

Bit of a cliffhanger... Sorry guys. Thanks for reading, and I'll have another out pretty soon. Here go the "thank you's"

**st.elmo-lover**: Thanks so much :) I know I've said it before, but you've got no idea how much I appreciate that you review all the time.

**ktkakes:** AHH it's driving me crazy not to say anything about your thoughts on Cricket, but I don't wanna mess up the ending for you so I'm gonna keep my mouth shut :X. Haha, glad to see that the Blink/Race thing made you happy.

**SantaFeDreamer**: Hi there. Thanks for reviewing, and I'm happy you like the story. Nice pen name, btw :)

**trignifty:** What I usually do is I don't post everything I've written right away. I make sure to stay a couple chapters ahead, that way if I don't get to write, I can still have something to post. I was always one of those people who hated when it took writers a month to get a new chapter out, because then I wasn't sure if they'd ditched the story or something, you know? Anyway, thanks so much for the review and the really great comments you always write.

**NarniaRulz**: So me and my friends all have dibs on our favorite newsies, right? Like, I'm Mush, my best friend Kayla is Race, my other friend Julie is Spot Conlon... We all go by those names, and we all have little name bracelets because we're such losers. Anyway, I think Julie really believes, deep down, that she's Spot Conlon. Every time she walks into a room, she yells "Nevah feah, Brooklyn is heah!" That was sorta off topic, but I figured I'd tell you because you wrote that quote in your review. As for the newsie hat, one of mine I found in my dad's closet, the other I got at Khol's, and the last one I asked an old man where he got his in the mall and he pointed the store out to me. Sadly, I can't remember what the store was called. I guess Khol's is a good place to check, and if I come across any more I'll let you know :)

**peculiarjuliar:** Haha. I'm so attached to my newsie hat. Yesterday I left mine on all day even after I changed out of my newsie stuff, and I accidentally ended up falling asleep with it. So my mom comes in this morning, stands in the doorway, and goes: "Maria... Your obsession with this movie is getting really out of hand." End of random story time. You may've got something as to "why the heck" (lol) Cricket showed up seconds after the creepy guy got knocked out, but I'm not saying any more than that!

**Pippa Kelly:** Yeah, Cricket kind of is a moment-ruiner. Damn him. Or damn me for writing it the way I did? Hmm... Anyway, thanks for the review. And no, my suspenders aren't red. I was looking for brown ones since Mush is my favorite, but they didn't have 'em anywhere so I had to settle for black :(


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the Disney movie, "Newsies." The only characters I claim ownership over are Chaos, Cricket, and the Brooklyn Newsies whose names were not mentioned in the movie.

Oh man, I got _so _much writing done last night :D I'm actually really close to being done with this one, and I've already got ideas written down for the next fanfic. I keep telling myself that I'm gonna go back to my non-fanfiction stories, but then I get another idea that has to do with newsies. Oh well.

Alright: I know it really doesn't matter much now, but I made a huge mistake on my old story, "Would Ya Swear You Won't Forget Me?" I couldn't find out why everyone was so confused in the beginning, and it turns out I missed a very long and important chapter while updating. I'm really sorry for this. To the people who read the story already, if you go back and check out "Chapter two" it'll make a whole lot more sense now. Again, sorry.

.-:-.-:-.

Someone had their hand placed lightly on my arm and was shaking me. "Chaos... Chaos, c'mon. Wake up." They whispered, a hint of impatience in their voice. I could hear the sound of rain hitting against glass, but I was too groggy to comprehend what was going on.

I teetered between reality and a dream for a few seconds until I finally opened my eyes. The dust-laced window of the lodging house was in front of me. The rain that had threatened all day yesterday had finally come, and it fell hard. I was lying on my side, huddled in my bunk with blankets over me.

"Chaos, c'mon." the voice from behind me said again, shaking my shoulder a little more anxiously this time. I groaned and rolled over to face him. Spot was sitting in a chair positioned next to my bunk. I could have sworn I saw a smile creep up onto his lips, but it straightened out when I searched for it again.

"What gives, Conlon? I happened to be havin' a very good dream." I mumbled, slightly slurring my words. The usual smirk appeared on his face. "Oh yeah? Must've been 'bout me, den." He said.

"Matter a'fact, it was." I answered. I sat up in my bed and pushed the covers off. My throat was extremely dry. When was the last time I had had something to drink? When was the last time I had been _awake?_ I tried desperately to remember, but my mind was blank.

Spot's mouth dropped open and he raised his eyebrow at me. "Yep. You was drownin'." I explained. The look of shock disappeared from Spot's face and a scowl replaced it. Grinning at his reaction, I got up and pushed past him towards the washroom.

He put his arm out to stop me and pulled me backwards by my waist. "And where do ya think yer goin'?" He demanded, getting to his feet. "To da washroom." I said, trying to fight his strong hold. I couldn't do it, however, since I was still feeling lightheaded.

"Oh, no yer not." Spot told me, pushing me back down on the bed again. "Hey!" I yelled. He ignored my protests, as always. "You fainted, incase ya don't remember, Chaos. And it's bound to happen again if ya don't stay in dat bed until you ain't feelin' so weak anymore." He instructed. Bits and pieces of the scene at the docks was coming back to me, but the fog and the mist made it seem so much like a dream. _Had Spot really said everything that I remember?_

I decided not to think about it then. My head already hurt as it was. "But I'm thirsty!" I whined. Spot sighed and rolled his eyes, disappearing into the washroom for a few seconds. He came out with a cup of water and put it down beside my bed.

"Hmm... Spot Conlon waitin' on somebody? I never thought I'd see the day." I said sarcastically. His eyes narrowed at me. "Watch it, Chaos. Or else dat watah is gonna end up on yer head." He growled. "Besides, I ain't gonna be heah for long so don't get used to it. Ghost jus' needed to sell a few papes. He's on his way, 'nd den I'm gone."

My heart sunk slightly as he expressed how much he didn't want to be in that bunk room with me any longer than he had to. I nodded slowly and took a few sips of water. As drowsiness consumed me again, I put my head down on the pillow and dozed off.

**Ghost's Point Of View**

I opened the door to the bunk room and stepped in, but Spot didn't realize I was there. His head was in his hand as he stared at her unconscious body.

"I'm finished sellin', Spot... You can go now." I told him. He looked up at me and I could tell it took a few seconds for the meaning of the words to soak in. He nodded slowly and got to his feet.

"She woke up." He mumbled, going over to his bunk to get his hat. "Really? What'd she say?" I asked, taking his place on the chair beside her bed. "Not a lot... She said she was thirsty." He answered absentmindedly. Poor guy... This girl was really getting to him.

Flashback

Rumors were spreading like wildfire when Spot came back in the middle of the night with an unconscious Chaos in his arms. As he put her on her bed, everyone was wondering what happened.

Some of the guys were saying that she had gotten mugged, while others were going as far as she had drowned. Still, no one dared to ask Spot. But from the looks of it, Chaos had just simply fainted.

When we woke up the next morning, it was pouring outside. Spot was still in the same chair he was in when we fell asleep. He was desperately trying to fight off sleep as he watched over her.

I waited until all the other newsies left the lodging house, so it was just me, Spot, and an insensible Chaos.

Sure, being a leader had changed him and made him tough. But no one can change completely, right? Spot Conlon had ended up cold and insensitive, but there had to be some part of the old him left. The same guy that I had become best friends with when I first moved to the lodging house.

I took a deep breath and approached him. "You a'right, Spot?" I asked softly. He didn't tear his gaze away from her as he nodded. I pulled a chair over next to him and rested my elbows on my knees, staring down at the wooden floor.

"Spot... What's wrong wit you? What happened?" I asked. He looked down as if he was thinking. I waited roughly a minute for him to say something, but he didn't. I sighed and stood up. I hadn't really expected him to talk, but it was worth a try.

"I tell her how I feel, and she faints. Figures." Spot mumbled. I stood still and looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "What?" I questioned. "I told her dat I cared 'bout her. And she jus' fainted." He lowered his head into the palm of his hand again and stared at her. Spot's eyes filled with a mixture of concern and confusion.

"Guess da only goil I can't get is da one I want." He muttered, feebly attempting to smile. Still, the smile didn't reach his eyes and I could tell that he was miserable.

So the fearless leader of Brooklyn had finally found his weakness. Who knew that it would end up being a girl that we all thought he couldn't stand?

"Did ya try 'nd wake her up?" I asked. Spot nodded. "I tried to, but she won't budge. I'll try again in a few hours." He said. I dragged the chair that I was sitting on back where it came from.

"Listen... I'se gonna go out and sell a couple papes. I'll be back real soon, and den I'll watch her. You can sell or get some sleep or whatever ya wanna do." I offered. Spot looked up at me, and for the first time in years he actually looked like the powerless one instead of the one who was always in charge. "A'right. Thanks, Ghost."

I patted him lightly on the back as I walked past him towards the door. "Don't mention it."

.-:-.-:-.

Thanks so much for reading. Reviews would be great, and I'll have another chapter out either tonight (late) or tomorrow morning.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the Disney movie "Newsies."

Alright, So I was planning on uploading this earlier. A lot earlier. But my friggen power went out (the whole blocks power, to be exact) for several hours. Grrr. I never realized how lost I am without my computer. Playing solitaire over and over again for roughly four hours just doesn't cut it.

On with the newsieness.

.-:-.-:-.

**Chaos's Point of View**

The next time I opened my eyes, I was lying on my back staring at the bunk above me. The strong morning sun was streaming into the window and hitting me in the face. The sound of birds chirping outside the bunk room window told me that the storm had passed.

I blinked a few times in order to clear my vision. When my eyes focused after a couple seconds, I saw a note directly above my head. I sat up to look more closely at the piece of paper on a string. It was tied to the planks of the bunk above me and was spinning around slowly on the end of the string, roughly 2 feet above my mattress.

_"Don't even think about getting out of this bed."_

It didn't have to be signed for me to know who it was from. I ripped the note off and crumpled it, string and all. Judging by the silence in the bunk room, I assumed I was alone. I swung my legs over the side of the bed to get up, and came face to face with Ghost. "Woah!" I yelled, nearly toppling backwards onto the bed again.

Ghost had been sleeping in the chair next to my bed. His head was drooping forward with his chin against his chest. When I screamed, I had woken him up in a panic. Ghost's head snapped up. His feet got tangled as he tried to scramble out of the chair, and he landed on the floor.

I had to stifle a laugh as I stared down at Ghost, who was now a heap of confusion on the floor. He rubbed his head and groaned as he stood up. "Well, _you're_ feelin' better." He mumbled.

I shrugged but smiled, helping him the rest of the way to his feet. "I see ya got Spot's note." Ghost said, motioning to the crumpled up paper in my hand. "I also see you ain't too keen on listenin' to him, since yer already outta bed." He added.

I threw the note over my shoulder and it landed on my bunk. "I'm tired of him tellin' me what to do." I said, grabbing my hairbrush and heading towards the wash room. "Wait, where are ya goin'?" He asked, following after me.

"I dunno, but one things for shoah. I ain't stayin' heah. I'm in no mood to deal wit Spot after dat prank he pulled on me." Now that my mind was clearer, thinking about how Spot said he cared about me... I realized there was no way in hell that was true. It just wouldn't make sense. He didn't care about anyone but himself. Besides, I couldn't deal with his hot and cold mood swings any longer.

Setting my hairbrush down beside the sink, I turned on the faucet. Ghost stood in the doorway and leaned against the frame with his shoulder. "Why would ya think what he said was a prank?" Ghost asked.

"Because, Ghost. He likes to mess wit me mind, a'right?" I said as if it was obvious. I rubbed my face with some soap and rinsed it off with cool water. Over the sound of the faucet, I heard Ghost sigh.

"Look, Chaos... I know ya think Spot's out to mess up yer life, but dere's a lot of stuff you don't know." After drying my face with a towel, I brushed through my hair and began to redo my braids. "Oh yeah? Like what." I challenged.

In the reflection of the mirror, I saw Ghost bite his lip and shove his hands in his pocket. "Like Cricket. Spot never kicked him out. We did some investigatin' over da past few days, and it toins out he ain't who he said he was."

I caught Ghost's eye contact in the mirror and waited for him to explain. "Member dat guy who pulled a knife on you? Da one lookin' for 'Logan'?" Ghost asked. I nodded slowly, wondering where he was going with this.

"He was talkin' about Cricket. That's not a real nickname, Chaos. His name's Connor Logan. We got Jack to aks 'round Midtown, and it turns out dat dere's no one from dere named Cricket. He's bad news... You know how Harlem's been interested in Brooklyn territory?" Ghost asked. He didn't wait for me to answer before continuing.

"Harlem sent him sorta as a spy to see what's goin' on 'round heah, especially wit Conlon. When dat guy came lookin' for him, probably ready to bash Logan's head in for bein' a traitor in some udda' part of da city, Logan got scared and ran off."

I opened my mouth to reply, but Ghost stopped me. He continued, talking faster as if he had to prove something. "And speakin' of dat guy in da alleyway, when he grabbed ya in 'nd pulled da knife...Pipsqueak hoid yer screamin' and came to da docks for help. Now, Spot's always been one to stand up for his newsies, Chaos, but I'se never seen fear like dat before in his eyes. Soon as he found out you was da one in trouble, he was outta dere so fast you woulda thought dere was a fire or somethin'."

I had long since stopped getting ready and turned to look at Ghost. My mouth was slightly open and all I could really do was blink stupidly. He had given me way too much information at once, and I couldn't process it. I let everything sink in for a couple seconds before I found my words. "If Spot cares as much as you say he does, den why's he such an ass to me?" I said slowly.

A smile played on Ghost's lips, like he knew something that I didn't. "My guess is dat he don't know how ya feel 'bout him, so he don't know how to treat ya." Ghost replied, shrugging. "So he's a jerk to me because he doesn't know how else to treat me? Dat doesn't make much sense..."

"Den go aks him." Ghost suggested. I raised an eyebrow at him. "What?" I said in disbelief. "Go aks him why he's such a jerk to ya." He repeated, as if it were obvious. I laughed and turned around, turning on the sink again to brush my teeth. "No, Ghost. Dat won't help anythin'." I answered.

"Oh yeah? Says who?" he walked over to me and stood beside the sink. "Look, Chaos. You can either get yer stuff togedda, pick up, 'nd leave dis place without ever knowin' why he treats you da way he does... Or ya can go talk to him 'nd find out. He should be down at da distribution office by now..."

Ghost playfully tapped the side of my face with the back of his hand. "Yer choice, Chaos." He said, almost challenging me with his tone of voice. Ghost left the washroom and I stared at the doorway after him, thinking over what he had said and sorting through my own thoughts.

.-:-.-:-.

It's kinda short. I know. And a bit of a cliffhanger. Please don't come after me with pitchforks or anything?? I'll update first thing in the morning.

Thanks so much to the people who have been reviewing. Including 'Joker is Poker with a J', who definitely gets the award for "most reviews given from a single person in the span of 24 hours." Haha, thanks guys. It's much appreciated :)


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the Disney movie "Newsies." The only characters in this story that I own are Chaos, Cricket, and the Brooklyn Newsies that weren't mentioned in the movie.

Hellloo :D ::Says in extremely happy (and somewhat obnoxious) sing-song voice::

Okay. I'm pretty much almost somewhat completely sure that after this one, there's only one chapter left. I was thinking about splitting it up into two, but then I figured why not just leave it as one long one. 16 is a cool number to end at, anyway.

This one's short (sorry), but I think you guys will probably like it. Hopefully. And here goes.

.-:-.-:-.

My feet pounded against the cobblestone as I ran, hoping the circulation bell hadn't rung yet. If I had missed Spot, there was no tracking him down. He sold alone, far away from the rest of his boys, so no one ever knew where to find him.

From down the block, the bell rang out loud and clear as the newsies shuffled through the entrance. I'd made it just in time. I slowed to a jog right outside the gates of the Brooklyn Distribution Office and scanned the area for Spot.

My eyes focused on him, as the rest of the newsies made way for him at the very front of the line. _Of course..._ I thought, rolling my eyes.

Even just staring at him from far away made my heart skip and my stomach feel light as air.

The man working at the desk opened the wooden shutters behind the bars and Spot stepped up to counter, sliding some coins underneath. I took a deep breath and clenched my fists at my side, confidently trudging towards him. Honestly, confidence was the last thing I felt. But the frustration and anger that had been building up for over a week was about to drive me insane.

"Conlon!" I yelled, going up the three stairs that led to the wooden circulation platform. Resting his papers on his shoulder, he turned his head towards me and groaned. "Not now, Chaos." He muttered, trying to push passed me. I stood in his way, refusing to let him walk past.

"I have to talk to you." I demanded. However, he ignored me and kept trying to get down the stairs. I mirrored his actions. When he stepped to the side, so did I. "I said not now, Chaos." He growled, sounding more irritated this time.

"Yes, now, Conlon! We'se gonna clear dis up, once and for all!" I yelled. "Why do ya hate me!?" By now, I had attracted the attention of every newsie standing on the front half of the line. They all stared at me and Spot, waiting to see how he would react.

"I don't hate you. Now move outta my way." Spot grumbled, trying once again to push past me. "Den why do ya treat me da way you do!?" I asked. He refused to even look at me as he desperately tried to get away without causing a scene.

Finally, he huffed in exasperation, dropped his stack of papers to the floor, and attempted to pick me up so he could put me behind him. I squirmed in his grasp and raised my hand to smack him so he'd let me down, but in one quick motion he had dropped me to my feet and caught my wrist in mid-air.

He twisted my arm and pinned me against him so I was helpless. "Drop it." he threatened in my ear. "No. Tell me why. I'm not leaving this alone until you do. Get it through your thick skull." I shot back, allowing my immature side to take over. As he thought about it for a few seconds, he let his grip on my wrist go and I whirled around to face him again.

It was impossible to read anything but anger in his expression, and I thought that I had finally pushed him over the edge.

"Because, Chaos. Because no one's ever had any power over me befoah... and den- den you come along... and you practically captivate me wit every god damn thing dat comes outa yer mouth, a'right? Is dat da answer you'se lookin' to heah!?"

The ice in his blue eyes froze my thoughts and made my knees weak. "I don't believe you." I muttered, telling him the truth. "Oh yeah? And why else would I be sayin' dis, Chaos? For kicks?" he asked impatiently.

"For payback!" I shot back at him, nearly cutting off his words. "Payback for all da crap I'se given you since I was heah... You ain't used to takin' dirt from nobody! And ya jus' think ya can mess wit me, 'cause you assume I'se gonna fall for ya jus' like every udda girl 'round heah!"

"Dammit, Chaos! What do I have to do to make you believe me!?" He screamed, louder than I had ever heard him scream before. Every head inside the gates turned to us and it went deathly quiet. So quiet that I could hear my own quickening heartbeat. "Prove it." I hissed.

Spot's breathing stopped for a split second and he turned his head, noticing for the first time that all eyes were on the two of us. He looked over the crowd of newsies, obviously contemplating something in his mind.

Finally, he looked back towards me and let out a small sigh. Then he put his hands on my shoulders and pulled me towards him, forcefully pressing his lips against mine. A chorus of gasps came from the mob of boys and the entire world seemed to spin and freeze at the same time.

So that was it. I had fallen hard for the infamous Spot Conlon. The same kid who, when I first met him, I wanted to kill. And now something was happening that I never would have predicted in a million years.

Then reality overtook me again and I kissed him back, causing everyone to erupt into cheers. When Spot pulled away, he took his hands off my shoulders and stepped back, picking up his papes again. He rested them on his shoulder as his trademark smirk turned into an actual smile. "Proof enough for ya?"

.-:-.-:-.

A kiss _and _a real smile!? One giant leap for Spot Conlon.

So I hope everyone liked that. However, it's not over yet! One more chapter to go. Thanks for the reviews you guys have been sending, and thanks for reading. Maybe I'll have the next chapter up by tomorrow.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the Disney movie, "Newsies." The only characters in this story that I claim ownership over are Chaos, Cricket, and the Brooklyn newsies that were not included in the movie.

AHHHHHHHHH. Last chapter.

It's long. Compared to the chapters I've been posting lately, anyway. So here goes.

.-:-.-:-.

I slumped in the booth seat and tried to focus on the text of the menu, but it was no use. I tapped my fingernails nonstop against the table and my leg bounced uncontrollably. Ghost looked over the top of his menu and raised an eyebrow at me. "Uh... Chaos?" he asked. "Could ya stop dat?"

"Oh god, I can't take dis anymore!" I exclaimed, throwing my menu onto the table. "Everyone's lookin' at me, everywhere I go!" I said, dropping my head into the palm of my hand.

After the whole "scene" down at the distribution desk, Spot and I sort of just went in different directions without so much as another word to each other. The entire day, people would just look in my direction and whisper to one another while I was trying to sell. The creepy thing was, it wasn't just newsies. Word had spread to people who weren't even there to witness it.

Ghost raised his eyebrow even higher and smirked at my sudden outburst. "Well I don't blame 'em. You'se da goil who was suckin' face wit Spot Conlon in front of all of Brooklyn."

"I wasn't suckin' face!" I shot back defensively. "And whadda ya talkin' bout, all of Brooklyn!? Stop exaggeratin'!" Ghost innocently shrugged. "I'se a newsie. It's what I do. Anyway, I ain't sayin' it's a bad thing. I always knew you 'nd Spot was gonna get togedda'. You'se exactly like each udda."

"So? Dat don't mean nuttin'." I responded. "What about da sayin' "Opposites attract"?"

"It's a true sayin', ya know." I heard a voice from behind me. Ghost looked up and I turned around in the booth. Spot had come into the diner without being noticed and was standing behind us, leaning the majority of his weight onto his cane.

"Think 'bout it. I'se good lookin', smart, charmin'..." Spot looked towards me. "And you're... well..." His voice faded out as he smirked. I rolled my eyes. "Please, Conlon... Please jus' give it a rest." I begged. I already had a throbbing headache.

Spot transferred his gaze to Ghost. "Is it a'right if I have a few minutes of privacy wit da goil?" Spot asked. "I sorta think... we'se gotta talk." He added. Ghost nodded and stood up, leaving his seat to Spot.

Ghost wandered outside for a smoke as Spot slid into the booth across from me. There was an awkward silence between us as we avoided eye contact. "Guess we gave everyone quite a show dis mornin', huh?" Spot asked quietly, finally breaking the silence. I smiled as I caught his gaze. "Yeah, guess we did..." I replied.

Spot inhaled and let it out as a sigh. "Ya really drive me crazy, Chaos... I dunno anythin' else dat coulda' impelled me to do somethin' like dat in front of all me boys, never mind all da newsies in Brooklyn."

"I drive _you_ crazy? Conlon, dere's been some times where I'se come incredibly close to wringin' yer neck." He smirked at my comment, knowing full well that I was dead serious.

Spot and I heard whispering from across the diner. We both turned our heads and saw Nudge, Haggle, and Flint sitting at a table, staring at us. They grinned at us as Spot glared at them. He slammed his hand against the table and got to his feet, dangerously pointing in their direction. "Any of ya make _one_ comment and prepare to get yer heads bashed in." He threatened.

The grins immediately disappeared from all three faces at once and they turned back around in their chairs. Spot closed his eyes for a second to calm himself and sat down again. He slowly and cautiously picked up my hand that was lying on the table, lacing his fingers with mine.

I swallowed the lump in my throat as my gaze went from our hands to his eyes. "Look, Chaos... What I'se about to say, I nevah do anythin' like dis. So you'se gonna hafta gimme a break." He said in a hushed voice. I nodded slowly and stared at him with my eyes wide.

"Despite how much ya piss me off, I think... I love ya." He muttered. "Be me goil." Spot bit his lip nervously and looked anywhere but at my eyes. I couldn't even answer. All I could do was stare in awe. The fearless, egotistical king of Brooklyn looked more helpless than a lost puppy. _Oh God... What did I do to him?_ I asked myself.

"Or else." He added. As soon as the words left his mouth, he seemed more relieved. I cracked a smile. _There he is._

.-:-.-:-.

"Chaos!" I closed my eyes tighter and hoped that I had been imagining it. "Chaos!!" Nope. Definitely wasn't imagining it. "Leave me alone." I groaned, turning my back to Spot's wake-up call.

The blankets were ripped off of me in an instant. I blindly felt around for them to pull them back up, but I gave up a few seconds later and put my head back on the pillow.

I heard Spot sigh and approach my bunk. He quickly scooped me up into his arms and lifted me off the bunk, taking my arm and placing it idly around his neck. I opened my eyes and found that we were already on our way to the washroom. "Why can't I ever jus' wake up peacefully?" I muttered.

Spot smirked. "Learn to deal wit it, sweets. Some things ain't neva' gonna change." He replied. Spot put me down so I was sitting on the washroom countertop. He put one hand on either side of me and brought his face up to mine. "Now heah's an idea, Chaos. How bout ya stop yer complainin' for once—" Spot kissed me quickly on the lips. "—And get ready to sell."

Neither of us said anything for a few seconds and he kept his face inches away from mine like so many times before. Except this time, there wasn't any bit of tension of anger between us. "I love ya, Spot." I said.

He smiled at me, but it quickly turned into a smirk. "Yeah, I know ya do." He said egocentrically. I rolled my eyes, but couldn't help the smile that was creeping up onto my face. Spot started to walk away and I jumped down from the counter. "Hey... I thought ya said ya didn't need a goil, Conlon." I asked pensively.

He looked over his shoulder and smirked. "Pfft, when did I say dat? You'se loosin' it, Chaos." Spot said, obviously aware of the exact time and place he had told me that having a girlfriend was completely unnecessary because he "had his boys and his territory."

"Yeah, Guess I am." I called after him. "I'se wit you, ain't I?"

.-:-.-:-.

When I was done in the washroom, I went over to my bunk and sat down to pull on my shoes. Ghost approached me and sat down on the bunk across from mine, leaning in. I looked up as I tied the laces, only to find that he had an extremely serious look on his face. "Listen, dere's someone outside who wants to talk wit ya." He said in a hushed voice. I raised an eyebrow at him. "Who?"

Ghost glanced sideways and saw that Spot was in hearing distance of the conversation. "You'll find out. Jus' make it quick, a'right?" He whispered. With one last skeptical look, I stood up from the bed. Ghost mouthed the word "go!" and I slipped out of the bunk room and down the stairs.

When I opened the lodging house door, I saw that two boys were seated on the curb with their backs turned to me. One of them I didn't know, but the other I immediately recognized as Cricket.

I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned against the doorframe. "Spot ain't gonna be happy if he finds out you had da noive to come back heah." I hissed. Cricket turned and looked up at me. The two boys hastily got to their feet. "I know... dat's why I aksed Ghost to get you instead of anyone else..."

"Personally, I don't think ya should be showin' yer face round heah, eidda." I replied mercilessly. He bit his lip and hung his head in shame, nodding slowly. "What do ya want, Cricket? Or "Logan", I guess I should say."

He took a deep breath and avoided my gaze. "Look, Chaos... I know I blew it real bad, lyin' to you 'nd everyone else. And I'se sorry for bein' a good-for-nuttin' rat." Cricket said. "Ah, I wouldn't put it like dat..." I offered. He looked up at me in disbelief. "I'd say you was more like a backstabbin' sneak." I added angrily. His face fell again and he nodded.

"Yeah, you'se completely right. But dat's why I decided to get outta Harlem... I can't deal wit bein' a spy no more, Chaos."

"So ya come to _me_ for help, huh? Afta ya mess everythin' up?" I spat. "I didn't have no udda choice... You'se da closest thing to a friend I'se got." He begged.

I sighed and searched his face, trying to figure out if he was being honest or not. My eyes wandered to the shorter kid standing next to him. "Who's dis?" I asked, motioning to him with the tilt of my head. "His names Twister. He wanted out of da business, too, so I told him to come wid me."

My glare softened as I brought my gaze back to Logan. "I dunno if I can help ya..." I muttered. Honestly, I wanted to. I really liked spending time with him back when I knew him as "Cricket." He seemed like a really great guy underneath all the lying he did, but Spot would never allow him to stay in Brooklyn... Would he?

"A'right, Chaos. I understand," He sighed. "'nd for da record, I'se sorry." He nudged Twister and they turned to leave. "Oh, 'nd congrats on you 'nd Spot. Da whole towns talkin' about ya." He cracked a smile before he started to walk down the block.

I sighed, wondering what I was about to get myself into. "Hey you, suck-up!... Wait up a sec!" I called, running after them. Cricket stopped and looked over his shoulder, waiting for me to catch up. "Listen... I'll- I'll see what I can do. Maybe Spot'll listen to me if I aks him to." I said.

His face lit up. "Really!?" he asked. I rolled my eyes and nodded. "Yeah, but I ain't callin' ya Logan, a'right? You'se stuck wid Cricket." I told him. Cricket nodded quickly and grinned at me before the three of us began to walk back to the Brooklyn Lodging House.

"Da two of ya, listen to me and listen good. Watch every single woid ya say to Spot. Don't ya dare get on his noives." I warned. Twister looked up at me with a little bit of fear in his eyes. "Why...? Is Spot Conlon really as dangerous as everyone says he is?" Twister asked, finally opening his mouth to say something.

I smirked and shrugged at him, putting my hands in my pockets. "Nah. It's jus' dat... Well, gettin' on his noives is my job." I said.

THE END.

.-:-.-:-.

So yet another newsies story finished. Wow. Ehhh, I'm gonna miss writing this story. It was a lot of fun. I hope everyone enjoyed it.

Thanks so much to everyone who read and reviewed. Seriously, you guys made writing this whole thing worth while. Especially the people who reviewed often and/or after every chapter. I'd list you guys, but I wanna get this thing out as soon as I can so you can read it. But you know who you are-- Thanks.

So, of course, I've got another story on the way. Two, actually. But instead of posting them both at once (which would be a huge pain in my ass) I think I'm gonna let you guys choose.

Story number 1: This was, I think, the third or fourth newsies fan fiction I wrote. It's pretty different from the others. It's about a girl who lives off stealing and pick-pocketing because she's homeless. While trying to escape a street vendor when she gets caught, she goes up on the roof and meets a certain newsie. (Not telling who). The girl is extremely quiet and almost scared of other people because of her past, and the newsboy is determined to find out more about her. Since this story is already written, I'll be able to post fast updates.

Story number 2: This is the story that I'm currently working on. I think it's a little better written than the choice above since I wrote that one so long ago. It's about a girl who gets herself thrown into the refuge for something she didn't do in the first place. One of the newsies accidentally comes across her refuge cell (while looking for someone else) and they start to talk every night. I know, it doesn't sound very interesting. But I'm promising you, there's more to it than just that. The down side to this is the updates may be a little slow since it's a work-in-progress.

Alright. So tell me your opinions :)


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